THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 30, 1995 TAG: 9509300440
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JULIE GOODRICH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 54 lines
With a mind toward gaining back a bit of the respect they had lost in recent weeks, the Tallwood Lions left nothing to chance Friday night, overpowering Cox on both sides of the ball for a convincing 38-8 win over the Falcons at home.
Tallwood (2-1, 3-1), tied for eighth in the South Hampton Roads poll, was ranked two spots higher before losing to Salem, 3-0, last week. Before a rowdy homecoming crowd, the Lions erased any doubts about their status among the area's elite football teams.
``We knew we were going to lose a lot of respect after losing to Salem, and we had to gain it back,'' said Tallwood quarterback Gilbert Harris, who was 6 for 8 with 100 yards passing. ``We had a lot of hard practices this week. We had to get into the right frame of mind.''
Tallwood's TaRon Anderson led all rushers with 103 yards on 13 carries. Teammate Derrick Daniels added two touchdowns.
The Lions' defense dominated the first half, scoring on a safety and Calvin Wilson's 45-yard interception return in the second quarter and holding Cox (2-1, 3-1) to just 26 yards.
The Falcons held a 2-0 lead after the first quarter when a snap to Tallwood kicker Mike Nagelin sailed into the end zone for a safety.
``I told the players that we were going to go through four quarters and not let down. We were frustrated in the first few minutes and made some adjustments,'' said Lions coach Ken Barto.
Tallwood kicked the offense into high gear in the second quarter, scoring 18 unanswered points. In addition to the defensive scoring, the Lions also got a 32-yard field goal from Nagelin and a 4-yard touchdown run from Anderson to take command.
``We were just trying to get our name back,'' said Wilson of the defensive effort. ``We came out here and really cared.''
Daniels gave Tallwood a 25-2 lead after three quarters with a 1-yard run at the 5:24 mark.
The Falcons' defense proved susceptible to the run late in the game, giving up another short touchdown to Daniels with 4:08 left to play.
But Tallwood wasn't finished. After recovering an onside kick, halfback Lewis Floyd led the Lions to a game-ending touchdown, accounting for all but 6 yards of a 51-yard scoring drive as time expired. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by VICKI CRONIS
Cox running back David Hill, left, tries to evade Tallwood's Alvin
Wilson, center, and Calvin Wilson. The Lions overpowered the Falcons
38-8 Friday night, rebounding from last week's tough loss to Salem.
by CNB