Patriots fall in district battle

Albemarle made adjustments to Massaponax and they worked. The Patriots moved the ball all night, piling up more than 300 yards of total offense.

But neither of those things mattered because a series of penalties and mistakes at critical moments — combined with a methodical Massaponax offense — sunk the Patriots.

Albemarle dropped their second straight district home game to the Panthers 28-13, leaving the Patriots, who started the season 3-1, with a 3-3 record and a 1-2 district mark that’s going to make the final stretch of the season an uphill climb.

The Panthers did a fantastic job of limiting Albemarle’s big play ability, playing a press cover two on the Patriots’ wide receivers to hold the deep ball in check. That forced Albemarle into a series of timing patterns on deep outs along the sideline.

“We had some success with that, Zach [Vrhovac] caught a couple of those,” said Albemarle coach Rick Vrhovac.

Still, Albemarle failed to unleash any monster plays outside of an early 41-yard catch by Tyler Molinaro. That shortened the game for the Patriots and limited their second half chances.

“[The Patriots] have some weapons, a tremendous amount of speed, and we were terrified,” said Massaponax coach Eric Ludden.

Albemarle appeared ready to take control of the game late in the third after a Mayn Francisco touchdown from 33 yards out pulled the Patriots within a score at 21-13. On the ensuing kickoff, Garrett Scarborough’s monster hit pinned Massaponax on the 20. After that a pair of tackles for a loss forced the Panthers into a third and 23.

That’s when Darious Green unleashed a prayer of a pass down the Massaponax sideline that Najee Harris hauled in between a pair of Albemarle defenders. The 39-yard catch rejuvenated the Panthers, who then systematically marched down the field to set up a 10-yard run for a score by Green that gave Massaponax a decisive 28-13 lead.

WhileGreen capped the drive, Drake Sanders did the heavy lifting, much as he did the entire night. Sanders finished with 130 yards on 22 carries at the fullback spot in the Massaponax offense, picking up big gains on simple dive plays the entire night.

After the Green touchdown, Albemarle quickly moved downfield, boosted by an unnecessary roughness penalty and two nice completions by Jeremy Robinson to Zach Vrhovac and Jordan Hill. The Patriots reached the 1-yard line, but after getting stuffed on a power play, a low snap forced Robinson to rush and the senior threw an interception that left Albemarle trailing by a pair of scores and with little time left.

“We get down there on the one-inch line, and we run power and get stopped for a five-yard loss and then we throw an interception,” coach Vrhovac said. “The execution is hurting us right now.”