SA felt loss of two players in second half

COURTLAND

Southampton Academy Raiders are so far 1-1 in football, having been defeated 50-28 by the visiting Halifax Academy Vikings on Thursday evening. The first winning game for the Raiders, which took place on Aug. 23, was a 22-20 overtime win for SA.

Raiders head coach Dale Marks was first asked about the most recent event. He said the major things that hurt the team were having two players out in the second half, and that SA doesn’t have a “real deep team in terms of numbers.”

Within the first 5-1/2 minutes after the kickoff, the Vikings got the eight points, conversion included. The Raiders soon followed with six of their own, only to see the visitors get another touch down and conversion, 16-6. Soon after the second quarter began, though, the Raiders were up to 14. They surpassed to 20-16, thanks to a touch down by Winston Browne. The Vikings managed to get another six points, but were blocked in the conversion, making the half-time score at 22-20.

On returning to play, Marks said, “We were right there in the third quarter.” The score then became only 28-20, Vikings’ favor. He added long-pass plays and the opponents out-performing the hosts athletically in the fourth hurt.

Marks also acknowledged his team didn’t do as good a job in tackling, and that Halifax had some “wrinkles that caught us by surprise. That happens. I told my team after the game that their effort was there. I had no qualms.”

The coach added that the Vikings are “not a bad team. They have 18-19 kids, and an extremely good running back, No. 33, Eli Harris. He’s a quick kid who ran hard. No. 14, Ayden Woodall, stands 6 foot 2 inches and weighs 190 pounds … I didn’t feel it [the game] was a blowout until the end.”

As for his own players, Marks singled out running back Winston Browne for his “outstanding work on the field that night.” Quarterback Seth Rawlings’ absence in the second half was felt.

“I’m not making excuses. We were a little worn down. But we’ll re-group for the next game,” said the coach, who added that SA will go to Hampton Roads Academy on Friday, Sept. 23.

•••

“We were 14-14 and won the flip in the overtime and chose to use our defense first,” Marks said about the first game victory.

He mentioned the Raiders used a wedge play, which meant moving up the field to the five-yard line.

“It was a big play for us,” said the coach, who again acknowledged Winston Browne, who was the leading offense player for that game.

“The guys gave a joint effort,” Marks added.