It was a rough night Friday, as Randolph-Henry lost 42-7 to Central High, driving the Statesmen to 1-6 on the season. The Chargers now have 13 straight wins in the head-to-head series, maintaining the top seed in the Region 2A playoff picture with three games to go before the playoffs arrive.

“We did pretty good, scored right away and stopped them. The defense played well and Thomias Morrison had a good game catching the ball,” remarked Lunenburg coach Will Thomas.

“They abandoned the run early and then started running towards the end of the game with our second group in there. Everybody got to play and it was one of those games where we did a lot of good things.”

After jumping out to a 14-0 lead, the Chargers saw Randolph-Henry get a touchdown pass and recover a fumble to tighten things in the first half before erupting for 28 unanswered points, including 21 before intermission.

Ten different ball carriers amassed 268 yards on the ground for Lunenburg. Their veteran offensive line with returning starters in Colin Burke, Hunter Word and Hayden Gary alongside senior tight ends Seth Bishop and Nathan Farmer as well as guard Anthony Inzeo and sophomore Jackson Breedlove make much of the success possible for the running game.

“They’ve been playing a long time and know the way it goes. It’s the second year in Coach [Stanley] Christopher’s system. They’re good kids,” Thomas remarked. “Up front, we’re pretty big and it helps when you have some talent up there. We make mistakes here and there, but the offensive line has really played well.”

A look ahead for Randolph-Henry

The loss also dropped the Statesmen to 1-2 in conference play, with the final part of the regular season coming up. The main challenge they’ve faced is fixing a struggling defense, one that’s given up 251 points so far this year. That’s an average of 35.8 points per game. The Randolph-Henry offense, meanwhile, hasn’t exactly been able to generate the same as its opponents, only producing 12.2 points per game. 

They’ll go on the road coming up this Friday, crossing over the county line to take on Prince Edward. The Eagles find themselves in a similar situation, growing and developing. But while the Eagle may give up more points, 331 total or an average of 55.1 per game, they also score more often. The Eagles’ offense has put up 166 points in six games, averaging out to 27.6 per contest. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Friday at Prince Edward County High.