Chalk one up for the Newton-Conover High defense.
The Red Devils cashed in two interceptions and shut out an opponent for the first time this season in beating Bunker Hill 28-0 Friday on a rainy homecoming night at Gurley Stadium.
Ty Brown ran 25 yards with the first of his two interceptions and Rashad Kissler returned one 21 yards to set up the first two Newton-Conover touchdowns. The Red Devils (7-1, 3-1 Catawba Valley Athletic 2A Conference) scored their first 15 points within 52 seconds in the first quarter.
"I thought Ty and the rest of the secondary did a great job," Newton-Conover head coach Nick Bazzle said, noting how inexperienced his defensive backs were before the season.
"I was proud of the way we played defense. The kids played physical."
The Bears (3-5, 1-3) passed on 30 of their 42 offensive plays and Cameron Beard completed 13 for 81 yards.
"They got some animals up front and I knew we'd have trouble blocking them," Bunker Hill head coach Ron Turner said. "They had us outnumbered in the box, and when you're outnumbered in the box you gotta throw the ball.
"They were going to see how good you can throw it in the slop."
On the second play after Brown's 25-yard interception return, Newton-Conover quarterback Sam Royall made a nifty fake to an upback and kept the ball for a 12-yard touchdown.
"If your defense gets you the ball in field position you gotta capitalize," Bazzle said
The Red Devils also scored on their next two plays. They capitalized on Kissler's interception when Octavius Harden went over from the 2 and, immediately after Bunker Hill threw a fourth-down incompletion, Royall ran 28 yards for a touchdown.
The next time the Red Devils got the ball, they drove 56 yards in seven plays and scored on an 18-yard run by Harden, increasing their lead to 28-0 with 10:04 remaining in the second quarter.
The Red Devils lost fumbles on the Bunker Hill 18 and 15 in the second and third quarters and their substitutes failed to score after advancing as far as the Bears 2 in the fourth period.
"We've been our own worst enemies as far as drive-killers," Bazzle said. "When we get down in the red zone we expect to put points on the board.
"We gotta find a way to resolve that issue."
Harden finished with 96 yards in only seven carries and Royall gained 75 on 13 attempts as the defending state 2A champions totaled 229 yards, all by rushing, to the Bears' 145.
Bunker Hill's Davontaye Wilson picked up 51 yards on a run to the Newton-Conover 38 late in the third quarter. The Bears moved from there to the 31 – their deepest penetration of the night – before giving up the ball on downs.
"I get sick and tired of telling you newspaper people this, but our kids never gave up," Turner said. "Any chance to move the ball against a team like that in the mud is hard for us.
"They're a great team and a great program and Coach Bazzle coaches them well, but I'm as proud of our kids as if they were fighting for the state championship."
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