WILMINGTON — Wilmington scored one touchdown in each of the first, second and fourth quarters and went on to defeat county rival East Clinton, 21-0, Friday night at Alumni Field.
The Hurricane scored on its opening possession, as Kendal France capped a 56-yard, seven-play drive. His 18-yard run put the Hurricane in front at the 9:32 mark. Parker Henry tacked on the PAT for the 7-0 lead.
A strong defensive effort by the Hurricane led to the second touchdown of the night for the Hurricane. Wilmington’s defense pinned East Clinton deep in its own territory. The Astros were forced to punt from the end zone. The short field enabled Wilmington to score its second touchdown of the night. France returned the punt to the 14. Hurricane quarterback Peyton Hibbard made a backward pass to receiver Carter Huffman who outraced the EC defense and dove to the pylon with 10:08 showing in the second quarter. Henry added the PAT to extend the Hurricane lead to 14-0.
Wilmington appeared to be headed for a third score but fumbled the ball away at the 6 with the Astros’ Phillip Davis making the recovery. It remained a 14-0 Hurricane lead at halftime.
In the third period the teams battled for field position and the Astros moved the ball inside the 20. Landon Runyon made a circus catch, but the drive was stalled when the Hurricane’s Cameron McEvoy came up with an interception inside the one yard line.
That turnover led to a 99-yard drive which the Hurricane converted into its third touchdown of the night. Hibbard, from his own end zone, connected with Huffman for a 17-yard gain. Sophomore running back Thane McCoy scampered down the sideline on a 66-yard run. He then took the ball in from 14 yards out at the 11:16 mark of the fourth quarter. Henry’s kick made it a 21-0 contest.
Later in the final period, Henry attempted a 46 yard field goal which had the distance, but sailed wide to the left.
On the defensive side of the ball linebacker Jeff Valentine was in on several tackles for the Hurricane.
SUMMARY
Aug 28, 2020
@Alumni Field
Wilmington 21 East Clinton 0
Scoring
EC^0^0^0^0^0
W^7^7^0^7^21
First Quarter
WHS-France, 18-yard run. PAT kick Henry good at 9:32
Second Quarter
WHS-Huffman, 14-yard run. PAT kick Henry good at 10:08
Third Quarter
No Scoring
Fourth Quarter
WHS-McCoy, 14-yard run. PAT kick Henry good at 11:16.
