Staff writer
Despite the 46-22 victory Peabody-Burns earned over Little River Friday night, Peabody-Burns coach David Pickens had stern advice for the team in the postgame huddle on the field.
“We need to keep our heads in the game for a full 48 minutes or a 45-point win,” Pickens said. “We were about 18 minutes short tonight of a complete performance. We cannot get up on a team and let them get back in. I’m proud of you, but we have things to fix before our next game.”
Braxton Kyle returned the opening kickoff to the Warriors’ 25. Fred Winsor gained 2 yards on first down. Kyle earned a first down with a keeper through the middle to set up first-and-10 at the Redskins’ 15. Winsor claimed the first touchdown of the night with a run to the right side of the end zone. Winsor tacked on the 2-point conversion through the middle. Less than two minutes into the contest, PBHS had an 8-0 lead.
Little River’s offense ran a reverse on the kickoff return for a huge gain. Xavier Jabary stopped the first-and-goal attempt from the 5 with no gain. Winsor stopped the second down attempt at the 4. On third-and-goal, Kevin Baatrup intercepted a Redskins’ pass and returned it to the Warrior 15.
PBHS went in reverse on the next series. On fourth-and-20 at the Warrior 5, Kyle punted to Little River. The Redskins fielded the ball at the Warrior 37.
Despite defensive stops from Kyle, Kaden Gibson, Winsor, Jabary, Clayton Philpott, and Baatrup, Little River scored from the PBHS 1-yard line. The conversion pass failed. PBHS had the edge 8-6 with 1:47 left in the first.
Winsor started the next series with a 2-yard gain. An encroachment penalty moved the ball five yards. On second-and-3, Kyle ran a QB draw and set up first-and-10 at the Little River 16. Another opponent penalty, this time a late hit moved the ball to set up first-and-goal at the 8-yard line. Kyle scrambled through the middle for the score. Winsor caught a Kyle pass for two and PBHS lead 16-6 with 31 seconds left in the first.
The Winsor kickoff was defended by Kyle Seeney, Jabary, and Keifer Larsen. Other stops by Gibson and Philpott set up third-and-7 at the Redskins 27-yard line. Jabary caught the quarterback for a sack and a loss of 7 to bring up a forth and 14 punt from the Little River 20.
An incomplete first down pass set up second and 10 at the Warrior 29. With good coverage downfield, Kyle tucked the ball and earned a first down at the Redskins 30. Two incomplete passes brought up a third and 10 QB keeper for a gain of 14 to move the yard marker to the Redskins 16. A first down delay of game penalty set up first and 15 at the Redskins 21.
Kyle completed a pass to Winsor to set up second and 2 at the Redskins 7. Kyle Seeney moved the ball to the 5 for first and goal. Winsor rushed for 4 on first. A Kyle QB sneak gave the PBHS squad their third score in the half. The conversion failed but PBHS led 22-6 with 7:17 left in the second.
A short kick set up the Redskins offense at midfield. On first-and-10 at the Little River 34, a Jabary tackle jarred the ball loose and Larsen recovered at the 24-yard line. The Warrior offense had a short field with the ball at the Little River 24.
After a penalty on each squad, PBHS had runs from Seeney, Kyle and Winsor. On third and goal at the 1, Winsor crossed the goal line for a touchdown. A Kyle pass was tipped by the primary receiver but ended up a catch by Baatrup in the back of the end zone for a 2 point conversion. The Warriors were up 30-6 with less than five minutes left in the half.
A short Winsor kick was fielded at midfield. The series ended on fourth-and-5 at the Warrior 38 when Baatrup claimed a second interception in the contest to set up the Warriors at the PBHS 35.
A first down incomplete pass was followed by a completed pass to Winsor to set up first-and-goal at the Little River 4. Kyle gained 3 on first down. Seeney earned the score on a second-and-goal one yard run. With 2:44 left in the second quarter, PBHS led 38-6.
Neither team added more points before the half. The Warriors had the 38-6 edge at the half.
Little River opened the third quarter with a 3-play series that ended with a score. They added a 2-point run conversion. The margin was cut to 38-14 with 10:32 left in the quarter. No more scores waereadded in the third.
The next score of the contest came with just 5 minutes left in the game. Little River had a 3 play series that ended with a pass completion for a 6 -ard score. The conversion run was successful. The PBHS lead was cut to 38-22.
The Warrior offense put together a drive that started at its own 28, and covered the length of the field. Winsor, Seeney and Kyle combined nine plays to set up first and goal at the Little River 6. A Seeney rush finished the series with a 6-yard score. Philpott scored the conversion. PBHS increased the lead, 46-22 with 1:26 left in the game.
The Warrior defense held the Redskins for the remainder of the contest. Defensive plays in the second half were recorded by Colton Terronez, Jabary, Kyle, Seeney, Winsor, Philpott, and Gibson. Baatrup earned a third interception in the half.
Kyle was 4-for-11 for 44 yards. He also rushed 20 times for 174 yards and 2 scores. Winsor rushed 15 times for 101 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also caught 3 passes for 41 yards. Baatrup caught one pass for 3 yards. . Seeney rushed 14 times for 44 yards and 2 scores. Philpott was 2-for-7.
Seeney led the team with 12 tackles. Jabary had 8 stops and 2 sacks. Winsor had 6 tackles. Philpott added 5. Baatrup recorded 4 stops and had 3 interceptions. Kyle added 4 stops and Larsen had 3. Gibson had 2 tackles and a sack and Terronez recorded 2 tackles. Dakota Reynolds had 1.
The Warriors have 2 wins and will next play at home against Burlingame.