Riverdale gets complete win at Lincoln County

Now the Warriors’ opponents have something else to worry about because Riverdale’s defense has awoken.

After so-so outings in the Warriors’ first two games, the state’s top-ranked 5A team silenced Lincoln County 49-0 in front of a near-capacity crowd of 5,000 last night.

“We played a complete ball game,” Riverdale Coach Gary Rankin said. “We executed well on offense in the first half and the defense played well all night. We’ve stopped the run against everybody and made them throw.”

The Warriors (3-0) held the tradition-rich Falcons (1-2) to four first downs and 124 yards in total offense — 63 rushing and 61 passing. It was Riverdale’s most lopsided victory in a series that dates to 1979.

“I’ve known Gary a long time and we’re good friends,” Falcons Coach Louis Thompson said. “We weren’t too good a friends from 7:30 p.m. until about 9:30 p.m., but he’s a class act and they’ve got a good team.”

Warriors quarterback Dave Thomas completed 5-of-9 passes for 132 yards and three touchdowns. Tailback Gaston Miller complemented him with 11 carries for 122 yards and one touchdown.

Riverdale seized a 35-0 lead at halftime by scoring on five of its first six possessions.

Thomas had a hand in the game’s first four touchdowns with three TD passes and a 32-yard score on an option keeper.

“If there’s a better quarterback in the state I don’t know who it is,” Rankin said. “He’s got great instincts and he’s a great athlete. He plays with a lot of confidence and he’s a good thrower.”

Thomas’ first TD pass came on a 71-yard pass when wide receiver Keaton Anderson sped past the Falcons’ secondary, giving Riverdale a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter.

Thomas’ keeper on the Warriors’ next possession increased the visitors’ lead to 14-0 before he hit wide receiver Rahmel Oliver with a 40-yard TD pass late in the first quarter.

Chris Perkins made it 28-0 after catching a 2-yard TD pass from Thomas in the back of the end zone midway through the second quarter.

“We’re fast and our receivers probably average 4.4 in the 40-yard dash,” Thomas said. “They beat us the last two years in the regular season so it was good to shut them out.”

Miller broke several tackles as he weaved toward the sideline on a 44-yard touchdown run, increasing Riverdale’s lead to 35-0 with 10 seconds left in the first half.

The Warriors started substituting on their first possession of the second half, but that didn’t stop the onslaught as Tamar Butler made it 42-0 on a 9-yard run.

Antwone Smith finished the scoring on a 65-yard punt return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter after the junior made a nice cutback move to the opposite side of the field.

Lincoln County had two good scoring opportunities in the first half, but fumbles by the Falcons’ quarterbacks ended both drives.

The first scoring chance came on the first play from scrimmage when Andrew Vaughn recovered a fumble by Miller at the Riverdale 34. Two plays later Lincoln County returned the favor when Perkins recovered a fumble by Falcons quarterback Gus Fraley.

Lincoln County drove to the Riverdale 13 in the second quarter, but the drive ended on a fumble by backup quarterback Brince Ellis.