Warriors get first home game, first victory on the same night
CONCORD –Despite nearly squandering an 18-point lead, the Cabarrus Warriors dug deep and got their first victory of the season, defeating the Community School of Davidson, 39-26, Friday in their home opener at Randy Marion Field.
The Warriors (a team featuring players from Cannon School and cfa Academy) played their first four games of the season on the road, losing them by mostly lopsided margins, but their drought finally came to an end.
“I’m excited but disappointed in the same breath,” said Warriors coach Brad Hoover. “We finally got a win, finally had a home game. We played very well at times, and then we did some very stupid stuff at times.
“I’m excited for our kids, excited for our staff, excited for both schools,” Hoover added. “But at the same time, there’s still a lot of little things we’ve got to correct if we’re going to get on any sort of streak.”
In the first half, the Warriors looked like they were going to run CSD off the field. Running back Fred Peace Jr. had 15 carries for 144 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Warriors to a 29-11 lead at halftime.
In the early goings of the second half, the outcome looked much the same. Cabarrus blocked a field goal after a good drive by the Spartans. The offense then drove inside the Davidson 20, but quarterback Michael Dickens threw an interception near the goal line.
The Spartans took over at their own 45 after a penalty added to the return and took only three plays to find the end zone. They forced Cabarrus to punt and then scored on their next offensive possession and got the two-point conversion to make it 29-26 with over half the fourth quarter remaining.
RECORDS
Community School of Davidson 2-2 overall, 1-1 Southern Piedmont 1A Conference; Cabarrus Warriors 1-4, 0-1 NCISAA Piedmont
PLAY OF THE GAME:
The Spartans, despite starting their drive at their own 35, took three plays to get inside the Cabarrus red zone. After Baker Westmoreland set the Spartans up with second-and-5 at the Cabarrus 14, quarterback Davis Pharr dropped back looking for his second passing touchdown and third overall of the day. Instead, Cabarrus Warriors defensive back Nasir Roberts snagged the pass and raced 86 yards up the sideline for the score, escorted by a convoy of blockers.
“I had to listen to coaches,” said Roberts. “They directed me to the play. Without them, I wouldn’t have had that (interception). I saw (the ball) and, at first, I was like I can at least get a hand on it. Then I brought it back in and went the distance.”
After the extra point, a 32-26 lead turned into a 39-26 lead with 3:28 left in the fourth.
“I was just praying we could get in the end zone,” Hoover said. “Then I was just worried that after that I had to take that last timeout to just get guys a break to get in there if they were on special teams.”
PRIMETIME PERFORMERS:
Cabarrus Warroprs
-- Peace finished the night with 27 carries for 212 yards and three touchdowns. He also had five receptions for 34 yards.
“He’s big,” Hoover said of Peace. “He’s one of our captains, he’s a leader out here. He works extremely hard all the time. I wish that rubbed off on all our kids because of his work ethic and his heart. I tell these kids all the time, you control two things, your attitude and your effort. He’s the true definition of that.”
-- Dickens finished the night with seven completions on 11 attempts for 98 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also had a rushing touchdown.
- Javon Meyers caught a 52-yard touchdown in which he streaked past the defense, slowed down to get the pass, then ran away from the pursuit.
CSD
-- Westmoreland had 32 carries for 155 yards and a touchdown. He proved to be a near-unstoppable force most of the game, as it usually took multiple tacklers to stop his forward progress, much less wrestle him to the turf.
-- Noah Owen ran away from the defense for a 41-yard touchdown late in the third quarter.
WHAT’S NEXT?
CSD returns home to host the Highland School of Technology on Friday. The Warriors returns to the road, this time traveling to Matthews to take on Covenant Day Friday
CONCORD –Despite nearly squandering an 18-point lead, the Cabarrus Warriors dug deep and got their first victory of the season, defeating the Community School of Davidson, 39-26, Friday in their home opener at Randy Marion Field.
The Warriors (a team featuring players from Cannon School and cfa Academy) played their first four games of the season on the road, losing them by mostly lopsided margins, but their drought finally came to an end.
“I’m excited but disappointed in the same breath,” said Warriors coach Brad Hoover. “We finally got a win, finally had a home game. We played very well at times, and then we did some very stupid stuff at times.
“I’m excited for our kids, excited for our staff, excited for both schools,” Hoover added. “But at the same time, there’s still a lot of little things we’ve got to correct if we’re going to get on any sort of streak.”
In the first half, the Warriors looked like they were going to run CSD off the field. Running back Fred Peace Jr. had 15 carries for 144 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Warriors to a 29-11 lead at halftime.
In the early goings of the second half, the outcome looked much the same. Cabarrus blocked a field goal after a good drive by the Spartans. The offense then drove inside the Davidson 20, but quarterback Michael Dickens threw an interception near the goal line.
The Spartans took over at their own 45 after a penalty added to the return and took only three plays to find the end zone. They forced Cabarrus to punt and then scored on their next offensive possession and got the two-point conversion to make it 29-26 with over half the fourth quarter remaining.
RECORDS
Community School of Davidson 2-2 overall, 1-1 Southern Piedmont 1A Conference; Cabarrus Warriors 1-4, 0-1 NCISAA Piedmont
PLAY OF THE GAME:
The Spartans, despite starting their drive at their own 35, took three plays to get inside the Cabarrus red zone. After Baker Westmoreland set the Spartans up with second-and-5 at the Cabarrus 14, quarterback Davis Pharr dropped back looking for his second passing touchdown and third overall of the day. Instead, Cabarrus Warriors defensive back Nasir Roberts snagged the pass and raced 86 yards up the sideline for the score, escorted by a convoy of blockers.
“I had to listen to coaches,” said Roberts. “They directed me to the play. Without them, I wouldn’t have had that (interception). I saw (the ball) and, at first, I was like I can at least get a hand on it. Then I brought it back in and went the distance.”
After the extra point, a 32-26 lead turned into a 39-26 lead with 3:28 left in the fourth.
“I was just praying we could get in the end zone,” Hoover said. “Then I was just worried that after that I had to take that last timeout to just get guys a break to get in there if they were on special teams.”
PRIMETIME PERFORMERS:
Cabarrus Warroprs
-- Peace finished the night with 27 carries for 212 yards and three touchdowns. He also had five receptions for 34 yards.
“He’s big,” Hoover said of Peace. “He’s one of our captains, he’s a leader out here. He works extremely hard all the time. I wish that rubbed off on all our kids because of his work ethic and his heart. I tell these kids all the time, you control two things, your attitude and your effort. He’s the true definition of that.”
-- Dickens finished the night with seven completions on 11 attempts for 98 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also had a rushing touchdown.
- Javon Meyers caught a 52-yard touchdown in which he streaked past the defense, slowed down to get the pass, then ran away from the pursuit.
CSD
-- Westmoreland had 32 carries for 155 yards and a touchdown. He proved to be a near-unstoppable force most of the game, as it usually took multiple tacklers to stop his forward progress, much less wrestle him to the turf.
-- Noah Owen ran away from the defense for a 41-yard touchdown late in the third quarter.
WHAT’S NEXT?
CSD returns home to host the Highland School of Technology on Friday. The Warriors returns to the road, this time traveling to Matthews to take on Covenant Day Friday
