Football: No. 9 Annandale 28, No. 5 South County 7

By Phil Murphy
Senior Multimedia/Content Manager, Washington DC

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Something about Atom sophomore Melvin Robinson‘s performance on Friday suggests he was never one to obey the “Please Take One” signs while trick-or-treating.

The stand-out sophomore ripped down two decisive, highlight-reel touchdowns from Stallion defensive backs in the third quarter as No. 9 Annandale beat No. 5 South County, 28-7, to capture a share of its third Patriot District title in the last four years.

“He went from a guy that went straight down the field and catch it to a guy that can make some different moves,” said Atoms’ Coach **** Adams, in his 19th season at the helm. “We challenged him at half time and, I tell you what, he came back and made three or four plays that were incredible.

“He’s only a sophomore, so he’s immature. But when he grows up, he’s going to be big-time.”

Added Robinson, who finished with three catches for 102 yards and the two scores: “Once I give Cason [Kynes] a look when he gives me my sign, I know it’s there. We go through it every day at three o’clock.”

Annandale’s performance, especially in the second half, looked that rehearsed.

The Atoms held possession for all but 1 minute, 28 seconds of the third quarter, running 18 of the 22 offensive plays in the period and out-gaining the Stallions 100 yards to minus-1. In doing so, Annandale converted a 7-7 tie at half time into a 21-7 lead before the start of the fourth.

Kynes, who threw for four touchdowns offensively, atoned for two first-half interceptions to Stallion senior Karlos Morgan by picking off two passes of his own after half time while lined up at safety.

Adams called Annandale’s defensive effort — which, aside from a 69-yard first-quarter run by South County senior Eric Dorsey, allowed only 43 rushing yards on 19 attempts — the team’s best of the season.

The aforementioned Dorsey run yielded no points when Annandale junior linebacker Marquis Perez stuffed a 3rd-and-goal fullback dive from the 2-yard line.

Then Perez joined Kynes and two-way starting John Copenhaver on a tackle-for-loss on the subsequent pitch play to force a turnover on downs.

And it was Perez who provided the exclamation point — along with several other punctuation marks — with an audible, bone-jarring hit on a Stallion receiver with :44 left in the game that simultaneously had fans cringing and cheering.

“I could see that he slowed down and I had my angle,” he said. “Then, I just know. I know I can get there and I just know that, I feel to myself that I’m better than the next person and I’m going to run through him. That’s just my goal.

“I got goosebumps. When I get a hit like that and I hear the crowd go crazy, that keeps me going. That’s what makes me love this sport and that’s what makes me fight on for this.”

Despite the disappointing loss, the Stallions still qualify for the playoffs, which start next Friday. South County, the No. 8 seed in Division 6, will face top-seeded Oakton, a team Stallion Coach Pete Bendorf knows all too well. He coached the Cougars from 1992 to 2004 and led them to their first-ever Northern Region championship in 2002.

With the win, Annandale (6-4, 6-1 Patriot) shares this year’s Patriot District title with No. 10 West Springfield (7-3, 6-1), last season’s district champion.

The Atoms, who will be seeded sixth, won the district in 2005 and 2006 with Nathan Cartagena at quarterback, but was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by Oakton and Westfield, respectively, both by a score of 28-14. This season, Annandale hopes curb its Concorde playoff curse at third-seeded Chantilly in a rematch of September 12, 31-20 Charger win.

“Of all the teams in the district, we are the least-talented,” said Adams, who won state championships with the Atoms in 1993 and 1994. “But our quarterback has played great, the big kid No. 18 has developed into a heck of an athlete and we’ve played good defense.

“We just don’t have the people here anymore. We’ve gotta play 11 kids, but the kids we’ve got are great kids. The best group of kids with: Work ethic, they give you everything they’ve got; talent level, we just overcome it. They’re willing to do whatever it takes. We bounced back from the West Springfield loss and ran the table.

“I think we’ve got as good a shot as anybody.”

Email: pmurphy@digitalsports.com

South County 0 7 0 0 — 7
Annandale 0 7 14 7 — 28

2Q – AN – Herring 21 from Kynes (McQueen kick) — 11:16
2Q – SC – Bullock 29 from Andrews (Fawsett kick) — 2:46
3Q – AN – Robinson 29 from Kynes (kick failed) — 8:50
3Q – AN – Robinson 15 from Kynes (Kynes pass to Potts) — 0:29
4Q – AN – Potts 30 from Kynes (McQueen kick) — 5:40

Passing
SC – Andrews – 9-for-20, 83 yards, TD, INT; Beal – 1-for-6, 10 yards, INT. AN – Kynes – 9-for-18, 260 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT.
Rushing
SC – Dorsey – 11 car, 98 yards; Bullock – 4 car, 30 yards. AN – Kynes – 24 car, 48 yards; Kargbo – 8 car, 36 yards; Anderson – 7 car, 13 yards.
Receiving
SC – Doublet – 3 rec, 31 yards; Bullock – 1 rec, 29 yards, TD; McDaniels – 2 rec, 13 yards. AN – Robinson – 3 rec, 102 yards, 2 TD; Potts – 3 rec, 90 yards, TD; Kargbo – 2 rec, 47 yards; Herring – 1 rec, 21 yards, TD.
Defense
SC – Morgan – 2 INT, 3 PD; Tucker – 3 sacks. AN – Kynes – 2 INT, TFL, Sack; Perez – 2 TFL.
Time of Possession
SC – 18:14. AN – 29:46