A trip to the state football championship on the line Saturday when Riverheads hosts Poquoson
GREENVILLE — The last venture into the Staunton area for Poquoson football didn't turn out well for the visitors. The Bull Islanders lost in double overtime to Lee High School on Dec. 2, 2017 in the state semifinals. Jayden Williams scored the game winning touchdown as the Leemen won 27-24 in one of the more exciting games in recent memory.
Six years later, to the day, Poquoson (10-3) will travel the nearly three hours west on Interstate 64 to play in the area again, this time taking on Riverheads (12-1) in the Class 2 state semifinals.
Instead of Jayden, this year's Poquoson team must contain Cayden, as in Riverheads senior running back and linebacker Cook-Cash who has been wreaking havoc on playoff opponents now that he's finally healthy.
Cook-Cash has 501 yards on just 49 rushing attempts — 10.2 yards per carry — in the postseason this year. He also has 11 touchdowns on offense and two more on defense in the playoffs. On the season he's at 1,291 yards in just nine games. He missed three games in September because of a foot injury and Riverheads' final regular season game wasn't played when the opponent forfeited.
"That is very impressive for Cayden," said Riverheads coach Ray Norcross. "It speaks volumes about how that kid fought through injuries and is now pretty close to 100%. And also it speaks for the linemen that help him. They get excited when he runs well. He gets excited when he runs well. It's a circle. They just kind of feed off each other."
Quarterback Levi Dunlap, running back Jonathan Talbott and an tough offensive line led by all region selections Peyton Snell and Mitchell Withrow help complete an offense that is averaging more than 34 points a game.
Norcross said the line, which only returned two starters from a year ago, has improved throughout the season. Most of the lineman don't play defense so they're fresher for longer in the games. The coach said he's seen other team's defensive lineman just lose their will by the fourth quarter.
"It gets a little distressing to know you may not be able to do anything about it," Norcross said of his team's opponents.
This will be the ninth straight state semifinal in which Riverheads has played, winning the previous eight. Riverheads won seven state championships in a row in Class 1 and has won 10 as a program since 2000. This year the Gladiators moved up to Class 2 and haven't missed a beat, winning its three playoff games by a combined 137-41.
"They are a good, physical team that runs a similar offense to us," Poquoson coach Elliott Duty said. "We have to try to limit the amount of big plays they get."
Limiting those big plays won't be easy. Of Cook-Cash's 11 touchdown runs in the playoffs, six have come on runs of 13 yards or more. He had one that went 91 yards, another for 85 and one for 49. Big plays are what he does.
Riverheads hasn't lost a home playoff game since 2014, a run of 21 in a row. The team is 63-1 at home since 2015.
"For the people at Riverheads who support us and the community, it's just really great for them to have this opportunity to play at home," Norcross said, "and hopefully advance from familiar surroundings to the next level."
If they do advance, it's not like they won't be in familiar surroundings. A win, and the Gladiators will be headed back to Salem for the ninth year in a row to play in a state championship. It's basically been Greenville South on championship Saturday for nearly a decade.
Poquoson is no stranger to playoff football, having reached the postseason the past 17 years, including winning the state championship in 2010.
"We're playing well heading into the semifinals," Duty said. "Some players that lacked experience at the beginning of the year have improved as we moved through the season. Some players were injured early and others stepped in and played well."
Baker Green leads the Poquoson rushing attack with 1,081 yards rushing this season. He has scored 15 touchdowns on the year. Mason McGavran has added 947 yards and 11 touchdowns. Quarterback Eli Tyndall is 39-of-93 passing for 700 yards and seven touchdowns.
Duty said the recipe for success Saturday is to "limit penalties and turnovers" and "grind out first downs."
Norcross said Poquoson's wing-T attack is similar to what Riverheads runs, but he said the speed is impressive.
"They may not be as big as some of the teams we've played," Norcross said. "But they are very fast and have closing speed on defense. But we are familiar with the wing-T and misdirection. We just have to play assignment football."
State football semifinals ticket info
The game is scheduled to kick off at 2 p.m.
There will be no cash sales for tickets, per the Riverheads website. Those wishing to attend can pre-purchase tickets at GoFan.co. Tickets are $10 plus $1.50 service fee and are on sale now.
There will be card readers at the ticket gate if anyone needs to purchase via credit card or debit card on Saturday. Gates open at 12:30 pm. and the school is asking fans not to try to enter the stadium before then.
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— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Riverheads hosting Poquoson in Class 2 state football semifinals Saturday
