ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, November 9, 1996 TAG: 9611110115
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
TYPE: ROUNDUP
SOURCE: FROM STAFF REPORTS
Bassett delivered a message heard around the state high school football circles Friday.
The Bengals shocked Magna Vista, the state's top-ranked Group AA team, 28-12 in Bassett.
Bassett (7-3 overall, 4-1 district) earned a three-way tie for the Piedmont District title and a berth in the Region IV Division 3 playoffs. Bassett will travel to Gate City, the No. 2 ranked team, next week.
Bassett tied Martinsville and Magna Vista for the Piedmont crown. Martinsville will now play at arch-rival Magna Vista in the other Region IV Division 3 playoff game.
``We made Martinsville happy. They don't have to make that trip to Gate City,'' said Bassett coach Ken Moran. ``This is my biggest victory. We had a big one last year when we beat Fieldale-Collinsville, but that didn't tie us for the district or put us in the playoffs.''
By making the playoffs, Bassett knocked Graham out of postseason competition.
Carl Watkins led the victory with 168 yards rushing on 22 carries and three touchdowns.
It was the defense, though, that might have keyed the win. First, Bassett's defense shut down Magna Vista's Travis Preston, Timesland's fourth-leading rusher, with just 80 yards on 21 attempts.
The Bengals' defense started the upset by blocking a Warriors punt that Steve Hatton returned 5 yards for the game's first touchdown.
After Magna Vista's Alex Seals hauled in a 23-yard touchdown pass from Chad Blackstock to make it 7-6 at the half, Watkins scored a pair of third-period touchdowns.
Seals and Blackstock hooked up on another touchdown pass for 60 yards, but the attempted pass for the extra point failed and the Warriors (9-1, 4-1) still trailed 21-12 and needed two scores.
After recovering a fumble, Watkins scored from the 2 with 1:20 left.
Covington 27, Glenvar 21 The Cougars rallied twice to give retiring coach John Woodzell a victory in his final game.
Covington (3-7) wiped out deficits of 14-0 and 21-14 to win the non-district game. Tracy Walker's 11-yard pass from Brent May with 10 minutes left in the game provided the Cougars with the winning touchdown.
Glenvar (4-6) built its 21-14 lead on two touchdowns by Lynward Twine. It was the rushing of Hunter Allen with 108 yards on 13 carries that kept the Highlanders offense going.
Covington's first three touchdowns came on short runs by William Stewart. Stewart rushed for 142 yards on 19 carries.
Pocahontas 20, Galax 0: Randy Shupe ran for 114 yards and a touchdown to lead the Indians to a Mountain Empire District victory over the Maroon Tide in Pocahontas.
Pocahontas (7-3) also got a pair of touchdowns from Chris Woodard and an inspired defensive effort.
Galax (1-9) managed only 46 yards of total offense and just four first downs.
Fort Chiswell 15, Narrows12: Ricky Govin made his first field-goal attempt of the season as the Pioneers won in overtime for a Mountain Empire District victory in Fort Chiswell.
Fort Chiswell (3-7, 2-3) stopped Narrows (3-7, 1-4) on fourth-and-goal from the 9-yard line late in the fourth quarter.
The Pioneers then marched down the field but failed to convert on their fourth-down attempt. In the overtime, Narrows went for the touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 7 and failed.
Fort Chiswell then converted Govin's game-winning 25-yard field goal.
Giles 42, Shawsville 14: Senior Michael Perdue rushed for 81 yards and a touchdown on four carries as the Spartans (10-0, 5-0) routed the Shawnees (3-7, 0-5) in a Three Rivers District contest in Pearisburg.
Perdue came off the bench to score on a 69-yard run in the third quarter. Shaun Vaught rushed for 70 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries in the first half. The top-ranked Group A Spartans had 323 total yards to 220 for the Shawnees.
The Spartans finished the regular season undefeated and await their playoff matchup.
Anthony Creasy ran for a 25-yard touchdown and 87 yards on nine carries to lead the Shawnees.
Christiansburg 24, Alleghany 19: The Demons scored with 1:46 left in the fourth quarter and recovered an onside kick by the Mountaineers to clinch the Blue Ridge district win in Low Moor.
Chris Holmes of Christiansburg (4-6, 2-5) scored on a 4-yard run with 1:46 remaining to put the Demons ahead 24-13.
Brian Carroll retaliated on a 1-yard run with 20 seconds remaining, but the Mountaineers could not recover the onside kick.
Holmes finished with 109 yards rushing on 21 carries for Christiansburg. Carroll ran for 87 yards on 19 carries for the Mountaineers.
Rural Retreat 54, John Battle 17: In Bristol, Rural Retreat's Gene Fields rushed for a school record 284 yards on 20 carries and scored five touchdowns as the Indians rolled past John Battle in a Hogoheegee District game.
The Indians (8-2, 5-1) finish in a three-way tie for first place in the district with Chilhowie and Patrick Henry-Glade Spring. Rural Retreat will play in the Region C Division 1 playoffs next weekend.
Fields got off to a fast start with touchdown runs of 58 and 70 yards as the Indians built a 41-10 lead at the half.
Carroll County 54, Tazewell 0: The Cavaliers clinched a spot in the Region IV Division 4 playoffs by drubbing of the Bulldogs in a Southwest District game in Tazewell.
Billy Chlougher rushed for 183 yards and three touchdowns in the win. Chlougher and Jeremy Overfelt combined for five first-half touchdowns for Carroll County (6-4, 1-3).
The Cavaliers had 302 yards on the ground against Tazewell (0-10, 0-4).
Carroll County will take on either Lee High or Grundy in the first round of the playoffs.
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Long : 115 linesby CNB