PARKERSBURG - If you like offensive football, Stadium Field was the place to be Friday night.
Riverside and host Parkersburg High piled up a total of 865 yards, with 376 for the visiting Warriors coming through the air and 272 for the Big Reds coming on the ground, with PHS eventually coming out on top 38-35 in the MSAC matchup.
But the Big Reds, No. 14 in Class AAA, had to stave off a late Riverside rally after they took a 38-28 lead with 1:45 to play on a Codey Roney 34-yard field goal. The Warriors, now 1-4, scored on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Trevor Rumberg to Matt Allen with just 11 seconds left, but then PHS' Andrew Butcher recovered an onside-kick try at nine seconds to preserve the win for the Big Reds, now 4-2.
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Photo by Jeff Baughan
Parkersburg's Chandler Hamilton runs for yardage against Riverside Friday. Blocking for Hamilton is Zach Garrison, left, and Daniel Fox.
PHS forged a 14-0 lead by the 11:49 mark of the second quarter. First, the Big Reds recovered a fumble on the game's opening kickoff at the Riverside 34 and six plays - all on the ground - later, they had scored. Adam Lindamood tried the middle from the 6, but found it clogged up, so he bounced outside and sped into the end zone at 8:56.
Dylan Thomas thwarted a Warrior drive by intercepting for PHS at the Big Red 4 at 3:16 of the first, and then on the first play of the second quarter, Aaron Roberts aired out a 53-yard scoring strike to fleet-footed Kwante Johnson, who gathered it in stride at the Riverside 30 and was off to the end zone.
That set off a second-period scoring splurge. Marcus Reed, who caught nine passes in the game for 225 yards, snared an 83-yard bomb for a Warrior TD after Rumberg had run 9 yards for six points.
But with Riverside up 15-14, PHS got the last score of the first half with 2:29 left as Roberts found Johnson again, this time from 8 yards out, for a 20-15 lead at intermission.
Three more TDs, two by Riverside, in the third quarter pushed the Warriors back in front 28-27. PHS scored on Chandler Hamilton's 5-yard run in the third, and Johnson grabbed his third TD reception, from 12 yards out, as the Big Reds took a 35-28 lead with 10:41 to play.
For the game, Rumberg threw for 318 yards, hitting on 19 of 28 aerials, while Roberts netted 149 through the air.
Lindamood carried 25 times for 167 yards.
