Robinson, Torrans power Mustangs by Hawks

Robinson carried 15 times for 121 yards, and Torrans scored three touchdowns while gaining 108 yards in 13 attempts.

Jared Day keyed the passing game for the Mustangs (3-2, 1-1) by completing nine of 16 passes for 162 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Ayers caught four passes for 61 yards and a TD. Sam McGuire had two receptions for 58 yards and a score.

North Buncombe's Gabe Dowdy gained 51 yards in 12 carries. Zack McDonald added 50 yards in seven tries.

SM did not punt all night while rolling up 22 first downs and 469 yards of total offense. The Black Hawks were limited to 200 yards of total offense.

The Mustangs showed an ability to move the ball from the beginning as they drove 66 yards in 10 plays following the opening kickoff. Day ran for 13 and 14 yards on consecutive plays. Facing fourth-and-9, Day went to the bench due to blood being on his arm and was replaced by Nathan Medlin, who hit Robinson for 15 yards. Torrans ripped off a 19-yard run and then scored from the 2. Stephen Brown kicked the first of his five extra points for a 7-0 lead with 7:39 to go in the first period.

The Hawks put together a solid drive as they reached the SM 28 before Robinson sacked Colin Sudillo for a 14-yard loss. That play helped stall the march and forced a punt.

SM drove 80 yards in nine plays to take a 14-0 advantage on an 8-yard run by Torrans with 10:56 to go in the half. Day completed passes of 12 yards to Ayers and 14 yards to Brody Frizzell, and David Kelley had a 14-yard run during the march. On the two plays prior to the score, Torrans and Robinson ripped off runs of 22 and 23 yards, respectively.

The Hawks were forced to punt but got the ball back two plays later when Carl Erdman recovered a Torrans fumble at the SM 25.

North gave the ball back moments later when Robinson picked off Sudillo's pass in the end zone.

The Mustangs followed with their second 80-yard drive of the night, this one taking eight plays. Day hit McGuire for 19 yards, and Robinson ran for 17. After a penalty nullified a score, they faced fourth-and-19. That's when Day hooked up with Ayers on a 40-yard scoring strike making it 21-0 with 3:26 on the clock.

Sudillo engineered a 65-yard drive in six plays to put his team on the board. He had runs of 19 and 15 yards and completed a 25-yard scoring pass to Ryan Rotundo. Daniel Waymont's PAT cut the gap to 21-7 at the 1:12 mark.

A mental error by McDonald on the second half kickoff kept the Hawks from having a chance to get back in the game. Apparently not realizing the ball was live, he let it roll and made no effort to pick it up. Medlin fell on the ball at the 2, and Torrans scored on the next play for a 28-7 margin just eight seconds into the second half.

A 39-yard TD pass from Day to McGuire built the lead to 35-7 with 7:36 remaining in the third stanza. It marked the second time in the game that the Mustangs had scored one play after a touchdown was nullified by a penalty. The 79-yard drive in six plays included runs of 10 and 11 yards by Torrans and a 15-yard gain by Robinson.

SM's next threat ended when Nick Davis recovered Kelley's fumble at the North 22.

The Mustangs regained possession on downs at the Hawk 40, but gave the ball back four plays later at the 37 when Medlin's pass was incomplete on a fake punt.

McDonald ran for 13 yards and Dowdy gained 16 leading to Sudillo's 3-yard scoring run. Waymont's point after made it 35-14 with 9:42 left in the game.

Brown's 24-yard field goal concluded the scoring with 3:16 on the clock. Runs of 15 yards by Torrans and Robinson helped set up the kick as did Medlin's 3-yard run on fourth-and-1.

NB SM

12 First Downs 22

38-164 Rushes-Yds. 46-292

3-11-1 Passing 10-19-0

36 Passing Yds. 177

5-42 Punts-Avg. 0-0

0-0 Fumbles-Lost 4-2

2-10 Penalties-Yds. 9-76

NB 0 7 0 7 14

SM 7 14 14 3 38

Back to Sports: 09/26/02.