Sports

Reporter Te'Shawna White

On October 29^th, the Gloucester High school football team beat the Hampton High Crabbers school for the first time in our program’s history, and will advance to the post playoff season for the second time in 30 years.

Isaiah Lester kicked a 30 yard field goal with six-tenths of a second left on the clock, giving the Gloucester Dukes a 16-13 win over Hampton Monday during a Peninsula District game. The Dukes lost their last 29 games against the Crabbers since joining the Peninsula District in 1990, and had been outscored by 1,289 points to 129 in the series.

The Dukes and Crabbers entered the night tied for the eighth and final spot in the Region 5A playoff chase, but Gloucester will make the top eight with the recent win. Hampton is in jeopardy of missing the playoffs for only the second time in 42 seasons, but could make it with a win Friday at Norview, and which began this week in 7th place. The Dukes and Crabbers entered the eighth and final spot in the region 5A playoff chase, but Gloucester will make the top eight win.

“It was incredible when I saw the ball go through (the uprights),” Lester said of his first high school field goal, “I looked up at the stands and saw everyone jumping up and down […] It was an amazing feeling.” The field goal capped a drive the Dukes began at their 18-yard line with 4:35 remaining. They had just stopped Hampton to a three-yard gain on a fourth-and-six at the 21. The Dukes then marched downfield on 10 rushing plays, and they mostly used tricks with an opened line, making way for running back Malakyi Cooke. Cooke ran six times for 43 yards on the series, while Parker Jowers had a key 14-yard gain on what proved to be the only scoring series of the second half.

The Crabbers and Dukes traded quick touchdowns to start the game. Gloucester drove 65 yards on six plays after taking the opening kickoff, with Joren Brown running 39 yards on three carries on traps. Quarterback Lester, who had completed the 13-yard pass to Tyler Carteret on a slant, ran the final to give Gloucester a 6-0 lead. Hampton retaliated by driving 52 yards on five plays for a touchdown. Max Pietrykowski’s 32-yard completion to Jahvon Richardson kick-started the drive. Kyrell McKinney ran the final 2 yards to pay dirt for the Crabbers to tie the game at 6 with 6:48 to play in the first quarter. The score was set up by Elijah Highsmith’s sack of Lester for a 10- yard loss to the Dukes that then forced Lester to punt the end zone, and When the Crabbers failed to convert a fourth-and-6 with 1:57 to play in the first half, the Dukes inherited good field position at their own 47.

That then had the Dukes take advantage with a nine point touchdown drive. The big plays were Lester’s completions of 12 and 10 yards to Carteret and 10 yards to Tyrus Wilson. The latter play, on which Lester scrambled away from pressure and lofted a pass to Wilson in the corner end zone with no time left, sent the teams into intermission tied at 13. Hampton crossed midfield on two of its three second-half possessions.

The win provided a much-needed moral boost to the Dukes, who had been nursing some wounds left by a notable Homecoming defeat against Phoebus. Offensive lineman Jordan Roane was cautiously optimistic going into Monday’s game, “we can possibly win, but I’m not going to say without a doubt. But, I think we have good chances.” Running back and defensive lineman Dylan Richards expressed more confidence. “Oh yeah,” Richards stated after being asked if he expected a win, “big time”. The win provided a personal victory for Head Coach John Scalf, “I marked this game on our calendar at the beginning of the year. It was on my bucket list to beat (Crabbers coach) Mike Smith once before I retired. It started with the playoffs last year (a 14-7 loss to the Crabbers). These kids fought through everything tonight and showed great resolve.” The game provided the Dukes with redemption and promise. When asked what motivated them before the Hampton win, Roane, Richards, and Lester all answered emphatically: “Revenge.”