Stone Bridge Blanks Marshall at Home

By Tim Richardson

Saturday, September 15, 2007

Both Stone Bridge High and George C. Marshall had trouble holding on to the football Friday night in Ashburn, but the Bulldogs were able to hold on for what really mattered -- a win.

With light rain falling the entire game, Stone Bridge shut out Marshall, 35-0, in a sometimes-sloppy match-up that triggered the mercy rule in the fourth quarter.

Bulldogs head coach Mickey Thompson said his offense struggled early, but he saw improvements on both sides of the ball in the second quarter.

"Defensively I thought we were a little soft early and we got better as the game went on, and we were hit and miss on offense," he said. "I thought it was a good performance and it was something we could get better from."

The Statesmen never were able to transform their occasional good field position into points. With the game still scoreless in the first quarter, Marshall (2-1) had moved into Stone Bridge's side of the field but fumbled on three consecutive plays, recovering the ball each time.

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Marshall vs. Stone Bridge

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The Stone Bridge marching band prepares to perform before the football game against Marshall High Friday night. (Kyle Hansen)

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Members of the Stone Bridge marching band line up to go on field to perform the National Anthem prior to Friday night's football game against Marshall High School. (Kyle Hansen)

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Despite the wet weather, Stone Bridge fans still filled the stands at Friday night's game against Marshall. (Kyle Hansen)

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The Stone Bridge football team watches the coin toss before its Friday night game against George C. Marshall High School. (Kyle Hansen)

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A Stone Bridge trombone player stands at attention before performing the National Anthem at Friday's football game against Marshall. (Kyle Hansen)

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Stone Bridge players huddle before the start of Friday's game against Marshall. (Anne Malinee)

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Varsity cheerleaders lead the crowd in a chant during Stone Bridge's 35-point victory over Marshall Friday night. (Anne Malinee)

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Blue body paint dripped off sophomores Zakk Hassall, 15, Ryan Smigelski, 15, and Eric Sopko, 15, as they cheered on Stone Bridge from the stands. (Anne Malinee)

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Fans line the chain-link fence around the field to watch Stone Bridge take on Marshall Friday night. (Anne Malinee)

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Stone Bridge players shake hands with the visiting Marshall Statesmen after defeating them by 35 points Friday. (Anne Malinee)

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Soaked Stone Bridge students cheered on their team from the bleachers Friday night. (Anne Malinee)

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Student trainers slogged across the soggy field with water bottles during Stone Bridge's game against Marshall Friday night. (Anne Malinee)

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No. 66 Mike Webber and No. 82 Dan Elliot line up against the Marshall Statesmen offense at the line of scrimmage. (Anne Malinee)

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The Statesmen weren't so lucky on their fourth straight fumble, though, which was recovered by Bulldogs defensive lineman Jimmy Bradford. On the ensuing drive -- helped by Kareem Alexander's 28-yard run -- Jeron Gouveia put the game's first points on the board with a 38-yard touchdown run with 10:53 left in the second quarter.

Stone Bridge (2-1) would go on to score four more touchdowns, but Marshall came up empty the rest of the game.

"It was nice to get the shutout," Gouveia said.

Gouveia had 98 yards on six carries, including a 34-yard touchdown run with 11:06 to go in the third quarter that gave the Bulldogs a 28-0 lead. He also intercepted Marshall quarterback Aaron Gooding in the third quarter and took the ball to the end zone, but a penalty negated the play.

"Jeron is Jeron. He's always going to make plays," Thompson said. "He's a guy we're going to go to more and more and more. Anytime there's a big play he's usually involved."

Other Bulldogs with touchdowns included defensive back Michael Prince on a 33-yard interception return, Mike Stancik with a 2-yard run late in the second quarter and Kareem Alexander with a 10-yard run with 9:24 to go in the fourth for the game's final points.

Alexander's second touchdown triggered the mercy rule, which first was implemented in Virginia high school football games last season. Under the rule, when a team is ahead by 35 or more points in the second half of a regular-season game, the clock will keep rolling on incomplete passes and when the ball carrier steps out of bounds.

Stone Bridge quarterback Patrick Thompson finished the game 5 for 10 with 85 yards.

The Bulldogs will host Loudoun Valley next Friday night. Thompson said his team is set up to handle the passing attack that the Vikings might deliver.

"It's always a rivalry. They're gonna be excited," he said. "We're looking forward to it. I'm excited to see what we can do with them."

Gouveia said a win against the rival Vikings would help propel the team into the rest of the season.

"It's a big rivalry between our schools," the Virginia Tech signee said. "We're gonna work hard in practice. We've got to get this win. It's like a reputation-type thing. We'll see what happens."

Extra Points

By Paul Tenorio and Matt Brooks