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Riverdale advances to semifinals By Steve Heath DNJ Prep Editor
A defensive stand that lasted nearly 11 games came to
an end Friday, but the season didn't.
Riverdale's run of consecutive quarters without giving
up a touchdown stopped at 43, but a season-long winning streak continues and
puts the unbeaten Warriors in the Class 5A state semifinals.
Top-ranked Riverdale (13-0) scored the game's first 21
points and went on to a 28-7 victory over No. 5 Cookeville (11-2).
The Warriors will play host to No. 3 Oak Ridge (12-1),
a 24-14 winner over co-No. 1 and previously unbeaten Kingsport Dobyns-Bennett,
Friday at 7 p.m. The winner will go to the Class 5A BlueCross Bowl Dec. 4 at
Floyd Stadium.
With the Warriors up 21-0, Cookeville got on the board
with a 6-yard touchdown pass from John Ledford to Chuck Karlosky with only 58.4
seconds left until halftime. The play followed what appeared to be a fourth-down
stop by the Warrior defense, but a holding penalty gave the Cavaliers another
chance.
It was the first touchdown against Riverdale's defense
since Smyrna's Ferdinand Alexander caught a 55-yard touchdown pass from Charles
Orona midway in the second quarter of a Week 2 game Sept. 3.
"We got scored on on defense, and that's going to
happen in the playoffs," said Riverdale senior quarterback/cornerback Dave
Thomas. "Teams get better, and that's something we're going to have to
realize.
"I think we reacted well. Teams get better, and
they're going to score, but I think we played well, defensively."
The touchdown gave the Cavaliers a brief sign of hope,
but the damage by the Warrior offense had already been done.
Set up by a 30-yard Thomas punt return, junior fullback
Tamar Butler, on the identical play he scored twice on last week, went untouched
for a 22-yard touchdown to give Riverdale the lead with 4:46 left in the first
quarter.
Thomas added a touchdown on a 1-yard sneak at the 8:55
mark of the second quarter and Butler added a 7-yard run for a 21-0 lead with
2:56 left until halftime.
Riverdale junior tailback Gaston Miller had 24 carries
for 175 yards and scored on a 4-yard run with 10:54 left in the fourth quarter
for the game's final points.
"It feels great (to get to the semifinals),"
said Riverdale senior defensive tackle Jermaine Alsup. "This is what we
want, and this is the position we wanted to put ourselves in.
"This is the playoffs. We weren't worried about
them scoring."
It marked the 19th win in 20 meetings between the two
programs. Riverdale beat Cookeville 28-10 in the first-round of the 2003
playoffs. The Cavs also snapped the Warriors four-game shutout streak.
"We kept our heads, and even clapped for them when
they scored," added Riverdale senior defensive tackle Marcae Brown.
"The way we look at it we played pretty good."
When Cookeville scored it was its second opportunity
inside the Riverdale 10-yard line. With Riverdale up 7-0, Cookeville had first
and goal from the 9, but a Brown sack and tackle for loss — both with help
from sophomore Chad Hunter — backed Cookeville to the 25-yard line. Two passes
fell incomplete, and the Warriors took over, eventually scoring on Thomas's
1-yard run. |
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