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Goochland shuts out Western

Goochland’s Kyle Tormey hobbled up to the line late in the fourth quarter and settled into his stance. The senior tackle who appears generously listed at 5-foot-10, 185-pounds then fired off, executed his block to spring yet another Bulldog running back for a solid gain and dragged his bad ankle back to the huddle without some much as a wince or a grab.

Even up by more than three touchdowns in closing seconds of Goochland’s victory over previously undefeated Western Albemarle, Tormey wasn’t interested in getting off the field.

“I knew if I came out something bad was going to happen,” Tormey said. “They’re not taking me out.”

Nothing bad ever happened with Tormey on the field, and the Bulldogs picked up a 23-0 victory, a share of the Jefferson District title and a home game in the Region II, Division 3 playoffs.

Tormey and the rest of the Goochland offensive line opened hole after hole for the Bulldogs, who piled up 353 yards rushing on 56 attempts. That methodical rushing attack and four forced turnovers were enough to spark the Bulldogs to the shutout victory at home.

“We just wanted to keep them contained and under control,” said Goochland coach Joe Fowler of Western’s dynamic offense. “Tonight was again another fortunate night for us.”

The cold temperatures and a muddy playing surface broke right for the Bulldogs, who forced quarterback Stephen Schuler and the rest of the Western offense out of rhythm from the beginning of the contest. Western managed to hold onto the ball for just 12 minutes and 45 seconds, giving Goochland a huge advantage in time of possession.

And every time Western did move the ball — three trips into the red zone — a Goochland turnover or a turnover on downs gave the Bulldogs’ defense the advantage it needed.

“We love a fight — we like to take things and not have someone give it to us,” Ezell said. “We like a close game, something interesting.”

Two big plays in the third quarter broke the game open for the Bulldogs. Ezell’s 80-yard sprint turned a 2-0 near deadlock at halftime into a 9-0 Goochland lead. B.J. Clark’s 84-yard interception return for a touchdown just minutes later seemed to break Western’s back.

Ezell finished with 132 yards on eight carries while David McKenna and Desmond Athey did the majority of the heavy lifting for the Goochland run game. The bruising tandem had 84 and 87 yards respectively. Dustin Plummer also chipped in with 47 yards on the ground.

Western appeared to take control of the game on the opening kickoff, recovering a fumble at the 20-yard line, but the Warriors couldn’t punch it in from there. Things got rocky after that as the Bulldogs powered past a Western defense that has shut down most rushing attacks this season. Schuler was uncharacteristically a bit off on a number of passes, and went 11-for-28 including three interceptions.

“I’m not sure exactly what happened there but Stephen is a fighter and he’ll give us a great game I’m sure in the playoffs — it was just one of those nights,” said Western coach Ed Pierce.

Tyler Ward did manage a monster of a game with 16 tackles on defense and 51 yards receiving that accounted for a big chunk of the Warriors’ offense, but the turnovers and mistakes at critical times piled up for Western Albemarle.

Goochland will face Millbrook in next week’s Region II, Division 3 playoffs at home.

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