Chargers take off, ground Rockets in District opener

In Week 4, the Chargers faced the Mount Saint Mary Rockets to open 2019 District 3A-1 play. Heritage Hall got off to a quick start and kept the Rockets trailing the rest of the game.

Early in the first quarter, junior running back Jayden Williams scored on a 6 yard run to put the Chargers up 7-0. A few plays later, Williams picked up a 16 yard fumble return and tacked on another Charger touchdown.

The Mount tried to stop the Hall, but the Chargers kept destroying. Senior leader and Harvard commit Phillip Smitherman caught a 20-yard pass from Robert Mbroh to boost the Chargers to a 21-0 lead after just one quarter.

To get the second quarter started, Mbroh dropped a pass in to junior Joe Washington for a 30-yard scoring connection. The Charger offense continued to dominate through the rest of the game. Smitherman added another receiving touchdown and then tailback Payton Earnest used his fast footwork and agility to scamper into the endzone on a 7-yard run.

At the beginning of the final quarter, The Mount finally got on the board via an "agreed-upon" 80-yard touchdown jog to a Rocket who had suffered a torn ACL during his junior season – and again during his senior season this year.

The Chargers didn't let that faze them. Williams responded with a 5-yard power run to put The Hall up 49-7 midway through the fourth quarter.

With a huge lead to start out the fourth, Coach Brett Bogert decided to put some younger players in. There was no letup as freshman K.J. Evans scored The Hall's final touchdown of the night to seal a 56-7 Charger victory.

Mbroh was efficient through the air, going 6 of 9 passing for 104 yards and 3 touchdowns without any interceptions The Charger trio of Williams, Earnest, and Mbroh led a ground attack that amassed 169 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Meanwhile, the Hall's defense grounded the Rockets all night. Without the "agreed-upon" touchdown, the Mount only mustered 24 yards of offense including 0 through the air. Hardy Bowers and A.J. Sirls, Jr., led the way defensively with 9 tackles apiece. Will Dunn, Connor Keith, and Nick Keith tallied ded 7 tackedowns each.

In special teams play, Luke Butler was perfect on extra points, going 8 of 8. Gavin Freeman nearly broke a kickoff for a touchdown before being tripped up 58 yards later.

The Chargers have a busy Homecoming week and plan to trap the John Marshall Bears on Friday at 7:00 p.m. at Pop Murray Memorial Field. With a win, the Chargers can move to 4-0 on the season and take over the driver's seat in the race to a sixth straight District title. #whateverittakes

Written by Quincy LeNorman '21
Photos by crpics.com

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