PREP FOOTBALL: Dubs retain Wayne County Classic title

By Justin Hayes
Published in Sports on August 27, 2017 1:48 AM

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By JUSTIN HAYES

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Win your space.

Such was the field directive Friday at New Hope, where wideout Alex Sharpless and the Eastern Wayne Warriors used a first-half curtain of fire to sting, then stagger, Goldsboro in the Wayne County Classic.

A 24-minute display of sound-in-all-phases football, the salvo helped the Dubs register a 34-12 triumph.  

And yes, matters escalated quickly.

Working in single coverage through most of the first stanza, Sharpless consistently won the line of scrimmage and, from there, worked over top of Goldsboro's secondary for crippling gains and death-knell touchdowns.

Three times in the opening half -- and twice in a bizarre, 96-second span -- the 6-foot-3 junior and quarterback Zeke Best went to work, staging what appeared to be their very own in-game version of pitch-and-catch for touchdowns.

The duo's handiwork, in addition to a 32-yard scoring grab by Marcus Rouse and a 60-yard punt return by the shifty Junious Tyson, rattled the Cougars and set the stage for a long night.

Call it a 34-point rude awakening.

"We just got hit in the mouth," GHS head coach Elvin James said of the affair. "Ain't no need to sugar coat it ... Coach (Leander) Oates did a great job -- they established what they wanted to establish in every facet of the game."

Indeed so.

Eastern Wayne worked in concert throughout, exploiting matchups outside the numbers, closing running gaps defensively and finally, playing like its hair was ablaze when on special teams.

"That's what we're teaching -- take care of your responsibility," Oates said. "Let the coaches take care of the individual mistakes ... and our captains are leading, putting guys in the right place (on the field)."

Such as the rangy Sharpless, who finished the night with six snares for 100 yards and three touchdowns -- all part of a scheme that began developing last week at Wilson Hunt.

"Alex was down on himself (after last week) ... he could've caught a lot of passes at Hunt," Oates said. "But he put in the practice, and I told him -- we're going to go to him."

And to Goldsboro's chagrin, the Dubs certainly did.

Both teams return to action next week, with Eastern Wayne making the trek to Pikeville on Thursday for the first of two dates with Charles B. Aycock.

Goldsboro will seek a return to form on Friday, when it plays host to county rival Southern Wayne.

A TALE OF TWO ZEKES

• EW quarterback Zeke Best lived two lives on Friday. In the first half, the senior completed six of nine pass attempts for 114 yards and four touchdowns.

The second half was a different story, however.

With the Dubs playing keep away and Best in scramble mode, the senior went just 3-for-16 for 61 yards and no scores.

X-MAN... AGAIN

• Goldsboro's Xzavier Bowden was in beast mode again on Friday, absorbing hit after bruising hit to record 100 yards rushing and a touchdown.

His signature moment arrived in the final quarter, when the 6-foot-2, 225-pound junior broke a litany of tackles at the line of scrimmage and rumbled 55 yards for a score.

Impressive.

ATTENDANCE

• Although no official number was communicated, the noise on the EW side was, at times, physically jarring. Here's wondering what the environment will sound like next Thursday when the Dubs tee it up in Powder Blue country?