The Lord Botetourt football team will play Northside twice this season, and the Cavaliers scored a knockout in round one. Botetourt beat the Vikings, 34-0, in their home game against Northside last Friday night.

Botetourt’s defense dominated this game as the Cavaliers posted their first shutout since whitewashing Fort Defiance, 77-0, a year and a week ago. This was a better opponent and a game to remember, as Northside only crossed the 50-yard line once the entire game.

“Our kids played hard,” said coach Jamie Harless. “This was the fifth time we saw the spread this year and each week you make more adjustments. All our kids played well.”

Botetourt put it away early, scoring 21 first quarter points. Hunter Rice scored on a one yard run, then Dylan Crawford picked off a Viking pass and returned it 65 yards for a touchdown. Ethan Clower’s nine-yard run gave LB a 21-0 lead after the first quarter and it was all over but the shouting.

Evan Eller, once again filling in for injured quarterback Preston Martin, ran one in from four yards to make it 28-0 at the half. Trey Rice kicked field goals of 31 and 37 yards in the second half to complete the scoring as Botetourt ate up time of possession despite being a point shy of a running clock.

Rice finished with 224 yards rushing on 21 carries to lead LB. Clower had 46 yards on seven carries and Dawayne Harris had 29 yards on 10 carries. Eller had 18 yards rushing and was two-for-two passing for 27 yards. Jake Dewease had a catch for 23 yards and Clower had one reception for four.

Princton Hall, a former LB player, led Northside in rushing with 12 yards on eight carries as Northside had minus 26 yards on the ground as a team compared to 328 for LB.

The two teams will meet again on October 20, only next time it will be at Northside.

THIS WEEK’S GAME/STAUNTON RIVER AT LB

Two undefeated teams on a collision course will collide in Daleville this Friday when Lord Botetourt hosts Staunton River in football.

The first Virginia High School League rankings came out this week and LB and Staunton River occupy the first two spots in Region 3D. LB is 5-0 with a rating of 26.0 and Staunton River is second with a rating of 23.5.

Staunton River has beaten Jefferson Forest, Cave Spring, Altavista and Liberty by a combined score of 227-62. That included 62 points against Cave Spring and 72 against Altavista.

Last year, River beat the Cavaliers in Moneta, 75-29, and LB coach Jamie Harless felt the Eagles kept their foot on the gas long after the game was decided. He’s sure to remind his team of that this week as they prepare for the rematch.

“We’re going to talk about a lot of things this week,” he said. “I definitely have my own personal feelings.”

LB is hoping to have quarterback Preston Martin back in the lineup this week. Martin was injured in the first half of the Blacksburg game, on week two, and has not played since.

Staunton River is loaded with weapons, including senior fullback Grayson Overstreet and senior tailback Kalip Jones. The Eagles return pretty much intact after going to the state 3A championship game last year, where they lost to Blacksburg, 28-20. Staunton River is 17-2 over the past two seasons, losing only to William Byrd and Blacksburg.

LB has already avenged a loss to Blacksburg this year, and a win over Staunton River would be equally sweet. Plus, it will be big time points for the winner in the VHSL rating system.

A huge crowd is expected this Friday night, so come early to get a seat. It should be a great atmosphere for high school football as two of the best teams in the area meet.

KEY TO THE GAME

“We’ll need to control the line of scrimmage,” said Harless.