Cross – On Saturday night at A.E. Ravenel Stadium at Cross High School, the third
edition of the “Wright Bowl” was held and for the second year in a row Cross defeated
Berkeley County rival Timberland 22-18.
The Wright Bowl is named for the head coaches of each school -- Shawn Wright at
Cross and Greg Wright at Timberland. They are cousins and former Cross Trojans.
Despite the score, this game was dominated from start to finish by the Trojans defense.
Cross held the high-octane Wolves offense to 89 yards of total offense with its longest drive
covering only 36 yards.
“We weren’t happy with our play in the first two games, so we challenged our kids all
week to play Cross football. On defense, we wanted our guys to run to the football and play
with relentless energy and they came to play tonight,” said Cross head coach Shawn Wright.
On Timberlands first offensive series the Trojans showed it was going to be a long night
for the Wolves offense. On the second play from scrimmage, the Trojans' Preston Fuller and
Devaughn Sutter broke through the line and sacked Wolves quarterback Kylen Brown for a
7-yard loss. The Wolves punted two plays later.
The Trojans began their first series at their 32-yard line and proceeded to march 68
yards to paydirt when Cross quarterback Tyler Mungin hit Jamez Way with a 13-yard
touchdown strike on fourth down. The 2-point conversion was no good and the Trojans led
6-0.
The one phase of the game that would hurt the Trojans all night showed up on the ensuing
kickoff when the Wolves J’Vaarez Sumpter fielded the football at the 26 and then broke three
tackles and raced down the left side for a 74-yard touchdown to tie the game at 6 as the 2-
conversion was no good.
Cross went three and out on its next possession and a short punt set the Wolves up at the
Trojan 22. Timberland took advantage of the great field possession to take the lead at 12-6 when
Demarri Middleton scored from the two yards out. Middleton also had a 10-yard catch on the
drive that set up first down and goal at the 10. He also had two interceptions on defense.
The Trojans would take the lead for good on their next drive as they went on a 17-play drive,
covering 88 yards that took over eight minutes off the clock with Mungin scoring from the 4 on
fourth and goal. He was 4 of 6 for 33 yards through the air and added 28 yards on the ground.
Da’Lanron Huge added the 2-point conversion and the Trojans led 14-12 at the half.
The Trojans would push their lead to 22-12 after an 11-play, 69-yard drive on their second
possession of the third quarter. Karmello Jones covered the final 13 yards. He had five carries
for 20 yards on the drive.
The rest of the game was dominated by both defenses as neither offense could generate a
sustained drive.
After another poor punt by Cross gave the Wolves the ball at the Trojan 36, q 30-yard
pass from Brown to Xavier Hampton gave the Wolves a first and goal at the 6. After
two incompletions, Amir Millegan scored and the Trojan lead was cut to 22-18
with 2:52 to go in the game.
.
The Wolves went for two, but Trojan linebacker David Wigfall came flying through and
sacked Brown.
The Trojan offense recovered the onside kick and then ran the clock out to win their
second consecutive game in the series after dropping the first 14.
Mungin was 10 of 21 for 97 yards and a touchdown through the air and added 78 yards
and another score on the ground. He did throw three interceptions.
After the game Mungin said, “I can’t let those interceptions bother me. We have a "next
play" mentality. Everyone makes mistakes but it is how you respond to them. You need to
respond in a positive way. I love this team and my teammates, and I am going to play my
heart out for them.”
Jones added 102 yards and score for the Trojans despite battling cramps in the
second half.
The Trojan defense was led by Wigfall and a front five of Coby Coleman, Jayden
Smith, Michael Bennett and Jailyn Broughton. Timberland had six drives of 15 yards or
less during the game.
“We just came out and played to the best of our ability. We wanted to make a
statement,” Wigfall said.
The Trojans, now 2-1 on the season, will travel to 0-3 Scott’s Branch on Friday. The 0-3
Wolves will be playing host to 3-0 Phillip Simmons.
“I’m proud of the way we fought all night long," said Timberland head coach Greg
Wright. "We had chances at the end, which is all you can ask for from your guys. We have
a good ball club, but we must iron out a few things and we will be fine.”
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