Unbeaten Tigers handle Rebels

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on October 13, 2013 1:50 AM

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WARSAW -- James Kenan scored three touchdowns on defense and rolled to a 59-14 win over North Duplin in a battle of Carolina 1-A Conference teams on Friday night.

The Tigers defense set the tone when Ja'Quan Williams scooped up a fumble on the second play from scrimmage and raced 24 yards to the end zone.

"I thought our defense was very good all night," James Kenan head coach Ken Avent Jr. said. "With the exception of one long touchdown run in the first quarter, I thought we tackled well and played well as a unit."

North Duplin got on the scoreboard on the next possession when Darron Goodman took a pitch around the right side of the line and raced 48 yards to pay dirt.

James Kenan (7-0 overall, 2-0 CC) grabbed the lead for good at 14-7 at the end of the first quarter when Al Owens punched the ball in from 17 yards out.

N.C. State commit Marcelias Sutton owned the second quarter with a pair of touchdowns that broke the game open. Dominique Barnes added a touchdown run and the Tiger defense scored its second touchdown of the game when Juan Hooper returned a North Duplin fumble 12 yards.

The Tigers led 40-7 at halftime.

Each coach found plenty of time for reserve players in the second half. North Duplin's second touchdown came in the third quarter when James Britt found Ced Kornegay for a 50-yard scoring strike.

"We have been working on some passing plays in practice and tonight we had a couple open up," North Duplin head coach Hugh Martin said. "That is a positive that we can take from tonight and hopefully incorporate into our game plans moving forward."

James Kenan added touchdowns by Ken Avent III, Deovnta Best and Jason Rose in the second half.

Owens led the Tigers with 74 yards on six carries. Sutton added 62 yards on five totes. Dominique Barnes completed two passes for 56 yards.

Goodman finished with 79 yards on 14 carries. Britt completed four passes, all to Kornegay, for 111 yards.

North Duplin (2-5, 0-2 CC) entertains Rosewood next week, while James Kenan plays host to Lakewood in a showdown for first place in the conference.