Clarke handles Madison

MADISON — The battle for Bull Run District supremacy was on as the Mountaineers played host to rival Clarke County on a chilly night at Booster Park. Unfortunately for the hosts, the cool temperature did nothing to slow down a red-hot Eagles running game.

Clarke, behind the blocking of a massive offensive line, piled up 309 yards rushing in a 32-13 runaway win to put a stranglehold on the Bull Run race.

“That’s one of the things we were worried about,” said Madison County coach Stuart Dean of Clarke’s offensive line. “They just won the line of scrimmage, and that’s one of the things we said we needed to do coming in.”

The Eagles (6-2, 2-0 Bull Run) wasted little time taking control of the contest as sophomore running back Grant Shaw took his first handoff of the night 36 yards for a touchdown on Clarke’s sixth play from scrimmage. Shaw, who carried the ball 18 times for 181 yards and three touchdowns on the night, got a huge block from senior guard Dusty Canterbury on the play, a theme that would carry on throughout the game.

Clarke County added a touchdown run from Sam Shiley and a 30-yard field goal from Raymond Smetanick to take a 15-0 lead midway through the second quarter before the Mountaineers finally lit the scoreboard.

After a long kickoff return allowed Madison to begin their next drive at the 50-yard line, bruising running back Logan Terrell needed just two carries to find the end zone. The second was a 38-yard jaunt down the right sideline that make the score 15-7 going into halftime.

Any momentum Madison gained entering the locker room was quickly lost on a three-and-out on the Mountaineers’ first possession of the second half. A bad snap on a punt attempt by Dylan Shifflette sent the ball over his head and gave Clarke great field position at the Madison 21-yard line. The Eagles capitalized four plays later when Shaw scored his second touchdown of the night, this one from two yards out.

Shaw scored again to start the third quarter and give his team a 29-7 lead before Smetanick booted another 30-yard field goal to push the Clarke County lead to 25 at 32-7.

Madison (5-2, 0-1) finally got back on the board with less than two minutes to play when backup quarterback Dustin Kirby hooked up with Sam Utz on a 49-yard scoring strike to set the final score at 32-13.

Despite the loss, Madison still has hope of reaching the Region B, Division 2 playoffs.

“The biggest thing we have to do is put this one behind us and get after it next week. We’re still sitting good to make the playoffs, so we can’t dwell on this one,” Dean said.

Terrell led the Madison rushing attack with 90 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. Devon Boone added 72 yards on 14 carries while starting quarterback Will Taylor went 11 of 20 for 91 yards and an interception.

In addition to Shaw’s 181 yards on the ground, Clarke got 22 carries, 101 yards and a score from Shiley.

The Mountaineers will travel to George Mason next week, while Clarke County will hit the road to take on Manassas Park.