Southern Wayne's comeback falls short

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on October 11, 2009 2:00 AM

• Print
• Email

DUDLEY -- Southern Wayne dominated the stat sheet all night long against Eastern Carolina 3-A Conference new comer Triton on Friday.

Unfortunately for the Saints, the score is the only statistic that matters in the win column.

The Hawks rode the momentum of Kiwon Warren's three touchdown effort and escaped with a 28-19 victory over the Saints at the Doyle Whitfield Athletic Complex.

Triton started the scoring less than a minute into the contest when Warren broke a 57-yard run to pay dirt.    

The Hawks appeared to add to their advantage on their second possession but a 92-yard run by Warren was called back due to a holding penalty in the backfield.

Southern Wayne used the momentum to embark on a six-play drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown run by Jaquan Cobb.

"We did a very good job running the ball tonight," Saints head coach Bob Warren said. "A lot of our success on the ground is a product of our line and their improvement over the last few weeks."

Kiwon Warren opened the second quarter with a nine-yard scoring run that put Triton (5-2 overall, 1-0 ECC) back in the lead.

"Two weeks ago we played our tails off and lost," Triton head coach Joe McLamb said. "Tonight we played a pretty good game, but it got ugly at times, and we pulled out a win."

Javonni Robinson pulled the Saints within one point with a 16-yard run, but the Hawks immediately answered with a sustained drive that culminated with

a 9-yard run by Ricky McNeil. Triton seized a 21-13 halftime lead and that would be as close as the Saints would get the rest of the night.

Down by two scores late in the fourth quarter, Southern Wayne turned to Quintae Bradshaw. With fresh legs at a premium, Bradshaw racked-up 30 yards and a touchdown in the 12-minute period.

The Hawks recovered a potential on-side kick and effectively shut down the Saints' rally by taking a knee near midfield.

On the night the Saints held a 305-150 advantage in rushing yards.

"I feel like each week we are getting a little bit better and we are understanding a little bit more," said Warren. "We just have to do the little things to get a win out of one of these close games."

The Saints (0-7, 0-1) will host North Lenoir on Friday. The same night that Triton will welcome Eastern Wayne to their turf.