Crusader defense answers the call; Bernardi ties sack record
Posted by The Skyliner on November 4th, 2009Stephen Lane
Staff Writer
The North Greenville football team has had to endure some hardships this season after starting 1-7. With two games left remaining, the Crusaders were hoping to avoid their worst season record in 10 years by winning at least one of those two games.
“It’s like I have said all year, we just have to keep striking the stone,” North Greenville coach Jamey Chadwell said. “We’ve got a lot of young players, and it has shown in some areas.”
“But the one thing that doesn’t show in the loss column is that our guys never quit no matter the score,” the first-year coach said. “Hopefully we can win one or both of our remaining games and try and finish on a positive note.”
The Crusaders went in this weekend to play a Clark Atlanta team that has similar speed to North Alabama.
The Crusaders’ first points came off a 36-yard field goal by Zack Sears, freshman business, after a punt by Clark Atlanta. On the Panthers’ next possession, linebacker Nathan Batchelor, sophomore business administration, pounced on a fumble with a little over three minutes left in the first quarter.
On the Crusaders’ first play following the fumble, quarterback Aaron Seigler, freshman business administration, sliced the Panther defense on a 58-yard touchdown to put the Crusaders ahead 9-0, but Sears’ extra point was no good. The Panthers then took the ball 61 yards in six plays but were stymied by the Crusader defense and had to settle for a 21-yard field goal to cut the lead to 9-3.
About halfway through the second quarter, the Crusaders forced Clark Atlanta to punt again, and Isaiah Johnson, freshman business administration, returned the kick 52 yards for a touchdown. With Sears’ extra point, the Crusaders took a 16-3 lead into half time.
The Crusader defense continued to hold strong, bending but not breaking. The Panthers added another field goal, this one from 40 yards away in the third quarter to cut the lead to 16-6. The defining moment came in the fourth quarter with just over five minutes left to play with the Panthers driving and looking to score.
A Panthers’ receiver caught the ball on the one-yard line and was preparing to step into the end zone, but Xavier Boykin, senior sport management, knocked the ball out of his hands. The Crusader defense held strong once more, and the Crusaders won 16-6.
The final score definitely did not tell the tale of the stat sheet as the Crusaders were outgained 343-143. Siegler led the way, running the ball for the Crusaders with 89 yards.
Andre Bernardi, senior sport management, also stepped up in a big way, tallying 12 tackles and four sacks and tying the Division II record with 41 sacks in his career. Bernardi needs just one more to break the all-time record and will look to do that this Saturday against UNC Pembroke at Younts Stadium at 1 p.m.
Tags: Fall 2009, Vol. 109 - Issue 8