Anchors take down Blackbirds
The Anchors beat the Blackbirds 35-26 in front of their home crowd on Saturday. Cole Hartley picked the Blackbirds apart, and the Anchors finished with 233 passing yards. Yards were hard to find for the Blackbirds, who had 248 in all.
It was the Blackbirds who scored first, when M.Redding converted from 42 yards. With 8:29 to go in the first quarter, Hartley hit Vandermeer from 6 yards out for a score, and that proved to be the winner. The Blackbirds cut into the deficit as M.Redding made it from 38 yards out. The Anchors pushed the margin out as K.Tennyson went in on a 3-yard touchdown run.
The Blackbirds responded as Okoye ran it in from 1 yard. The Anchors added to the lead when Hartley delivered a 2-yard touchdown pass to R.Padgett. Rafe Marlowe had the game's longest gain, 49 yards.
The Anchors were paced by their stars. Cole Hartley had 250 yards through the air; two went for touchdowns. Knox Tennyson averaged 5.1 yard a carry on his way to 96, with three touchdowns. Vaughn Vandermeer turned 4 catches into 75 yards and one touchdown. Dominic Crestwood anchored the defense, 13 tackles. On the losing side, Harlan Huxley had 116 yards through the air. Dalton Okoye carried 20 times for 86 yards, including two touchdowns. Rafe Marlowe had 4 receptions for 70 yards. Lucas Salcedo led the defense with 15 tackles. Elias Lachlan added +18% to the Blackbirds' chance of winning, more than any other player.