OAKWOOD — West Hall coach Tony Lotti said they needed to play a perfect game to have any chance to knock off Class AAAA No. 10 Marist.
They were far from it as the War Eagles raced out to a 29-0 first half lead en route to a 43-3 victory at Spartans Stadium Friday night in the two teams’ key Region 7-AAAA showdown.
West Hall (5-3, 1-1 Region 7-AAAA) had three huge first half turnovers, two that directly led to 14 points and another in the Marist end zone to snuff out what looked to be a sure scoring drive.
“We did everything I said we couldn’t do to be able to win,” Lotti said afterwards. “We didn’t stay in our gaps and you can’t turn the ball over against a team like that. They’ll make you pay every time.”
The Spartans, like most everyone that plays the War Eagles (5-2, 1-0), had trouble stopping their patented veer offense. Senior fullback Michael Addicks gashed the West Hall defense for 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns -- all in the first half -- while senior quarterback Jack Dinges added 74 yards and two scores in the first half. Dinges added a touchdown pass in the third quarter.
Marist came into the game averaging 253 yards rushing a game and finished with 291 yards, paced by Michael Addicks with 97 yards. Dinges, the War Eagles’ leading rusher on the season, finished with 91 yards and had 65 yards passing.
But West Hall was more of its own worst enemy, especially in the critical first 24 minutes. Jacob Satterfield was 13-of-20 for 155 yards passing but also threw a pair of interceptions. The first one, by the War Eagles’ David Sharkey, who returned it the Spartans 3, helped push the lead to 14-0 on the second play of the second quarter on Michael Addick’s first score.
West Hall had a chance to cut the lead in half on its next possession moving to the Marist 45 after four Satterfield completions. But a bad exchange on a handoff resulted in a fumble and the War Eagles needed just 1:21 and four plays, capped by a 13-yard scoring run from Dinges, to take a 21-0 lead.
After punting, the Spartans created a turnover on the next War Eagles possession late in the second quarter recovering a fumble at the Marist 43.
Satterfield completions to Will Dague and Tanner Ahmad, and a Marist penalty, moved West Hall to the Marist 3. But the War Eagles’ Dean Johnson picked off Satterfield in the end zone and then they marched 80 yards in just five plays in 1:14 for a 29-0 lead.
The Spartans did get on the board on the final play of the half on a Israel Lopez 23-yard field goal after Satterfield went 5-for-7 for 82 yards to move them to the Marist 6 with 3 seconds left.
West Hall will have an off week to regroup before playing host to White County in two weeks. Lotti said he hopes his charges will remember this.
“Hopefully this will be a learning moment for them,” he said. “We’ll take the off week and try to get better and improve on the things we need to get better at.”
In the third quarter Marist picked up where it left off forcing a quick three-and-out of the Spartans and then needing just two plays, highlighted by a 35-yard pass from Dinges to Michael Addicks, to push the lead to 36-6 less than two minutes into the second half.
The War Eagles added another third quarter score when Dinges connected with Danny de Quesada on an 18-yard touchdown pass with 2:41 left.
Both teams played their reserves in the fourth quarter.
Satterfield finished the game 15-of-28 for 161 yards passing with the two interceptions. Dague had six catches for 78 yards and A.J. Favorite had three receptions for 50 yards. Tyrese Osborne was held to just 23 yards rushing on 12 carries.
SCORING SUMMARY
Marist.......7.....22....14....0 -- 43
W. Hall.....0.......3.....0.....0 -- 3
First Quarter
M -- Dinges 14 run (Bleekrode kick) 7-0, 9:57
Second Quarter
M -- M. Addicks 3 run (Bleekrode kick) 14-0, 11:47
M -- Dinges 13 run (Bleekrode kick) 21-0, 6:51
M -- M. Addicks 1 run, 2:50 (Fitzpatrick pass) 29-0, 2:50
W -- Lopez 23 FG 29-3, 0:00
Third Quarter
M -- C. Addicks 7 run, 2:50 (Bleekrode kick) 36-3, 10:18
M -- deQuesada 18 pass from Dinges (Bleekrode kick) 43-3, 2:41
