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Western stuns Louisa County

When Mitchell Parks leapt off the ground after dropping Louisa’s Andre Mealy for a seven-yard loss in the third quarter, he knew that he’d just put Western Albemarle in control.

With Louisa County threatening but facing a fourth and two early in the third quarter, Parks knifed through the Lions’ offensive line on a called blitz by Western defensive coordinator Sam Spencer and hauled down Mealy, ending Louisa’s drive. The tackle all but snuffed out the Lions’ comeback effort coming out of the locker room.

“It was coach Spence that called that play and gave me a free and open shot,” Parks said. “We were still in our Cover 3, but he just sent me, took a gamble and it worked out.”

In turn, the Warriors picked up a critical 26-7 victory over Louisa Friday after building a 26-0 halftime lead. The win was a big step toward taking control of the Jefferson District race. The Warriors and Charlottesville are the lone unbeaten Jefferson District squads.

“To make a play like that, stop that sweep in the backfield and take that momentum away, it really did fire up our defense and our whole team,” Pierce said. “(Parks) does that all the time for us.”

Western’s Cody Davis got the scoring started in the first quarter with a 54-yard fumble return for a touchdown off a muffed option, and that set the tone for the contest immediately. The Warriors’ defense has forced a lot of turnovers already this year, and Friday was no exception as Louisa committed four. In addition to Davis’ fumble return, the Warriors’ Dom Losco picked off three passes.

Stephen Schuler led the way for Western offensively, tossing three first half touchdowns to Christophe Drapanas, Losco and Cody Davis. Schuler finished with 248 yards while completing 20 of 41 attempts, providing the vast majority of the Western offense.

“It was all Stephen, Stephen was on the money today,” Losco said. “He led us through the hard times and stepped up.”

Louisa didn’t struggle to move the ball, but the four turnovers and some critical penalties, particularly pass interference calls in the first half, undercut the Lions’ effort by either prolonging Western drives or complicating their own.

Sophomore signal-caller Kire Worley hit Rayshawn Jackson on a flare pass that turned into a 49-yard catch and run during the fourth to put the Lions on the board.

Louisa coach Mark Fischer refused comment after the game, clearly frustrated by an emotional contest that had important Jefferson District implications.

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