South River Football Rolls Past Chesapeake In Season Opener, 36-7

Playing its first game at the newly constructed Joe Pappetti Field, kicked off the 2011 season with a convincing 36-7 victory over Chesapeake on Friday.

Junior quarterback Connor Cox connected on three touchdown passes with wideout Mike Stange, while running back Lavon Chaney ran for a score of his own.

"I knew it would be tough in the beginning, because it's a new system and they've never played in a real game before. They responded great [to the new system]," said South River coach Lance Clelland, who made his debut as the Seahawks coach against Chesapeake.

The two teams traded punts throughout the first quarter, as each squad entered into its first real competition of the year.

The Cougars thought they had the games first score late in the second quarter, when a hook and ladder play sprung Devin Jones for a touchdown, but the score was called back for a chop block against Chesapeake.

South River got on the scoreboard when Cox found Strange in the back of the endzone with 5.6 seconds left in the half, to take a 7-0 lead.

"Basically that was a stalemate in the first half with a pretty good team," Chesapeake coach Rob Elliot said.

On the first possesion of the second half, junior Leo Donovan picked off a Joseph McDonald pass and took it 65 yards for the score. After a two-point conversion, South River led 15-0.

McDonald would make up for his turnover, taking a one-yard quarterback keeper in for the score with 2:38 left in the third quarter.

By the time the Chesapeake touchdown was added to the scoreboad, the Seahawks had added another of their own. Chaney broke free for a 70-yard touchdown run, increasing South River lead to 22-7.

"We're going to run to set the pass and pass to set up the run," Chaney said.

Desperate for a score, Chesapeake went almost strictly a shotgun formation. The South River defense held well, forcing two consecutive turn over on downs.

Ironically enough, when Chesapeake tried to succeed through the air, it was the Seahawks who took off. Cox hit Strange on back-to-back drives for touchdowns. 

"There's a lot of pressure on Connor because he has a lot of ability," Clelland said. "Just a little bit it came out tonight. He's going to get better, he's going to grow every game."

It was a solid performance for the Seahawks, who went 7-3 in 2010.

Southern High comes to Joe Pappetti Field next week in a battle of local rivals. That game is scheduled to kickoff at 6:30 p.m.

"Very special," Clelland said. "We're very excited about that."

Notes: Joe Pappetti, whom the South River field is named after, was the first football coach in school history. South River began playing football in 1964 and the field was named after Pappetti in 1986. Chesapeake running back Michael Ford left the game in the second quarter with what is believed to be an MCL sprain, according to coach Elliot.