PIKEVILLE – It took a while for North Lenoir to figure out how to stop the C.B. Aycock offense Friday night.
By the time the Hawks slowed the powerful Golden Falcons, it was too late as undefeated Aycock escaped the non-conference matchup, 42-29, Friday night in Wayne County.
The Hawks (0-3) spotted Aycock a 21-0 lead in the first 13 ½ minutes of the game thanks to a pair of Neil Clark runs and a 35-yard touchdown pass from T.J. Morrow to Michael Eutsey.
But the North Lenoir offense finally found its groove in the second quarter and on its third drive of the game. Junior running back Donyae Hopkins broke a 42-yard run for a score to complete a seven-play, 80-yard drive that made it 21-8 with 8:12 left before halftime.
A squib kick on the ensuing kickoff was fumbled and lost by Aycock. The Hawks offense was back in the end zone eight plays later when senior quarterback Landon Baker called his own number for a 4-yard touchdown. A second successful two-point conversion brought the Hawks to within 21-16 with 4:38 left in the second quarter.
Aycock’s offense again couldn’t be slowed on its fourth possession as it only took five plays for Morrow to finish a drive with a 49-yard touchdown pass to Clark for a 28-16 lead with 2:57 left in the second quarter.
An outstanding kickoff return set the Hawks up for its third straight score when Baker hit junior wideout K’haire Dixon for a 35-yard touchdown with 1:04 remaining before halftime and a 28-22 deficit.
Arguably the key series of the game commenced after Dixon’s touchdown. Instead of simply running out the clock and trotting to their locker room with a six-point halftime lead, the Golden Falcons flexed their offensive muscle again as they finished a six-play drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Morrow to Eutsey with only 1.8 seconds showing on the clock.
The late score gave Aycock an insurmountable 35-22 lead at the half.
“That was a big touchdown,” North Lenoir coach Calvin Sutton said. “That’s for sure.”
North Lenoir ate up more than four and a half minutes of the clock to begin the second half and moved the ball to the CBA 37-yard line, but were unable to convert a fourth down to sustain the drive with 7:22 left in the third quarter. It only took the Falcons 39 seconds and four plays to put their final points on the scoreboard when Clark ran 23 yards for a score that pushed the CBA lead to 42-22.
Clark, a senior, finished with a game-high 249 yards and three TDs on 20 carries. He also had one catch for 49 yards and another score.
“He’s a pretty solid player,” Sutton said of Clark.
In all, the Golden Falcons (3-0), who travel to Goldsboro next week, finished with an even 500 yards of offense, which included 359 on the ground and 141 yards on eight completions from Morrow, a junior.
Aycock first-year head coach Steve Brooks was quick to bring attention to his offensive line in the post-game, bringing all of them out for interviews for the media.
“This offensive line,” Brooks said, gesturing to the hulking linemen behind him, “is the heart of our team. We do not have success without them. Period. Neil Clark will tell you the same thing.”
North Lenoir, which returns to Wayne County to face Southern Wayne in Dudley, was led by Baker, who completed 10 of his first 11 passes to finish 12 of 19 for 137 yards. Eight of those passes went to Dixon, who finished with 107 yards receiving and one TD. Hopkins led all Hawks rushers with 113 yards and a score on 20 carries.
Cedric Summers, a senior running back, injured his ankle right before halftime but still finished with 43 yards on 12 carries. Injuries are beginning to mount for the Hawks, who only dressed 20 players for Friday’s game and even lost Hopkins late in the contest to a hamstring injury.
Although Sutton said he doesn’t believe in moral victories, he couldn’t hide his pride in his team for not giving up after falling behind by three touchdowns early to the Golden Falcons.
“They didn’t let it get to them and that makes me proud,” he said with a wide smile.