THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 10, 1995 TAG: 9509100233
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C9 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY REA FARMER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
The Hampton Roads Sharks persevered through a penalty-plagued game to edge the Baltimore Big Red, 20-14, Saturday night.
With the win, the Sharks (5-0) extended their perfect season in the Mason-Dixon Football League. Baltimore fell to 0-3.
Hampton Roads jumped to a 13-0 first-half lead but could not hold off a Big Red rally. With 14:48 remaining in the game, Baltimore scored and punched in a conversion run to take a 14-13 lead. But the Sharks refused to yield.
With 5:55 remaining, the Sharks stood 70 yards from their end zone. Quarterback Kevin Johnson stepped up to the challenge. He hurled a 35-yard pass to Charles Mott and followed with a 9-yard completion to James Rogers. Rogers then rushed 6 yards to put the Sharks within scoring distance.
After the Sharks were thrown for a 6-yard loss, Demetrius Stitmon dug in for a yard. Johnson completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Tim Carr to seal the victory with less than two minutes remaining. Tom Edwards' point-after provided the final margin of victory.
``I've got to give them a lot of credit, they played hard,'' Sharks coach Red Stickney said. ``I'm real proud of Kevin Johnson. We had a long drive, and that showed a lot of class by him and the backs.''
The Sharks and Big Red struggled with penalties, tallying 80 and 73 yards in offenses, respectively. Stickney blamed weather-hampered practices for the numerous charges.
``It was a hard game,'' Stickney said. ``They played well. I think we weren't mentally ready for this.''
Carr capped a seven-play, 25-yard drive with a 23-yard touchdown pass to Mott at 6:33 of the first. Edwards' extra point gave Hampton Roads a 7-0 lead.
With 1:57 remaining in the half, Kevin Vines rushed 8 yards to put the Sharks on the 1 and then streaked past the defense to widen the gap to 13-0.
The momentum turned in the second half. The Sharks' Reuben Rodriguez snapped the ball over Savoye Cherry's head to set up a Baltimore 1st-and-goal from the 3. Greg Pinkney rushed 2 yards for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 13-6. A conversion attempt failed.
A blocked punt again put Baltimore in scoring position in the fourth quarter. Taking over on the 31, Baltimore scored on the second play as Pinkney completed a 31-yard pass to Eric Foster. The two connected again on a conversion for the 14-13 margin. by CNB