Patriots back to business with 44-22 win over Raiders
APA comes back from 14-0 to earn third straight win
It was a return to normal for the Patriots as they go out of state and beat Southampton Academy in Courtland, Virginia, 44-22.
Arendell Parrott (3-1) was the only team to play in Lenoir county after Hurricane Florence. Head coach Matt Beaman said he could tell they were out of rhythm.
“With the layoff, we came out flat and fell down 14 to nothing,” Beaman said. “You could kind of tell we had been off for over a week, so it was good to get this game under our belts as we go into the game against St. David’s next week.”
St. David’s (4-0) actually beat the defending state champion Rocky Mount Academy (2-2) tonight. RMA beat APA to start the season, 58-48. The Patriots and the Warriors are now on a crash course to meet as two of the top three teams in the 8-man football division on MaxPreps.
APA and St. David’s have a rich recent history as they played each other in 2015 and 16 in the state championship game with Parrott coming out on top both times. Now St. David’s has a chance to set themselves up for the no.1 seed in the state with a win over the Patriots. With star quarterback-wide receiver tandem Connor Bright and AJ Banker gone, many outsiders believe the Patriots are rebuilding.
”There’s a lot of people who don’t think we’re as talented of a team as we were last year. I think Friday night (against St. David’s) will be a chance for us to make a statement, and go a long way to winning a conference championship.”
Part of the Patriot’s ability to bounce back without Bright and Banker is the emergence of senior QB-WR tandem Zach Vendemia and Matthew Huntley. Vendemia had 5 scores, 3 of them to Huntley.
“They’re becoming a dynamic duo,” Beaman said. “They have just great chemistry. When things get tough, Zach is going to look to Huntley. That was one of the questions coming into the year, who was going to take the touches that AJ was getting, and Huntley has taken the role and tooken it to another level.”
Kai Jones can be contacted at kjones@kinston.com or 252-559-1078. Follow him on Twitter at @MMJKaiJones and on Facebook at Kai Jones.
APA comes back from 14-0 to earn third straight win
It was a return to normal for the Patriots as they go out of state and beat Southampton Academy in Courtland, Virginia, 44-22.
Arendell Parrott (3-1) was the only team to play in Lenoir county after Hurricane Florence. Head coach Matt Beaman said he could tell they were out of rhythm.
“With the layoff, we came out flat and fell down 14 to nothing,” Beaman said. “You could kind of tell we had been off for over a week, so it was good to get this game under our belts as we go into the game against St. David’s next week.”
St. David’s (4-0) actually beat the defending state champion Rocky Mount Academy (2-2) tonight. RMA beat APA to start the season, 58-48. The Patriots and the Warriors are now on a crash course to meet as two of the top three teams in the 8-man football division on MaxPreps.
APA and St. David’s have a rich recent history as they played each other in 2015 and 16 in the state championship game with Parrott coming out on top both times. Now St. David’s has a chance to set themselves up for the no.1 seed in the state with a win over the Patriots. With star quarterback-wide receiver tandem Connor Bright and AJ Banker gone, many outsiders believe the Patriots are rebuilding.
”There’s a lot of people who don’t think we’re as talented of a team as we were last year. I think Friday night (against St. David’s) will be a chance for us to make a statement, and go a long way to winning a conference championship.”
Part of the Patriot’s ability to bounce back without Bright and Banker is the emergence of senior QB-WR tandem Zach Vendemia and Matthew Huntley. Vendemia had 5 scores, 3 of them to Huntley.
“They’re becoming a dynamic duo,” Beaman said. “They have just great chemistry. When things get tough, Zach is going to look to Huntley. That was one of the questions coming into the year, who was going to take the touches that AJ was getting, and Huntley has taken the role and tooken it to another level.”
Kai Jones can be contacted at kjones@kinston.com or 252-559-1078. Follow him on Twitter at @MMJKaiJones and on Facebook at Kai Jones.
