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| MARSHALL - The "triplets" combined for 301 all-purpose yards as Longview opened the 2005 high school football season with a 28-16 win over Marshall on a hot, humid Friday night at Maverick Stadium.
The game was the 95th meeting between the long-time rivals. Vondrell McGee collected a hard-earned 110 yards on 23 carries and one touchdown. Chris Ivory ran for a pair of scores while picking up 50 yards on seven carries; heat exhaustion relegated him to the bench in the second half. Quarterback Carlin Freeman was 9 of 18 passing - 6-for-8 in the first half - for 109 yards, plus picked up 42 yards on 10 carries. Longview scored each of the first three times it touched the ball. A salty Marshall defense, though, made the going tough. The Lobos extended a 21-10 halftime lead with a touchdown on their opening drive of the second half. McGee, who had been held to 37 yards on 10 carries in the first half, reached the end zone for the first time this season with a 14-yard scamper. It was mostly a stalemate after that. Marshall narrowed the deficit as the Lobos were driving for what could have been a back-breaker for the Mavs. Lamar Green picked up a fumble at his own 35 and returned it 50 yards. Longview's defense appeared to have put together a goal line stand, but a personal foul set Marshall up with a first-and-goal at the 3. Again, it took the Mavs fighting off a stalwart Lobo unit to punch the ball in as Junior Osborne scored on a reverse. The two-point conversion attempt failed. Marshall was led offensively by Jackie Robinson, who battled his way to 86 yards on 19 carries. The Mavericks finished with just 64 yards rushing, which included a huge 35-yard loss on a bad snap that sailed through the hands of quarterback Cory Carswell. It had been third-and-one from the Lobo 27. Carswell was 3-of-11 for 82 yards, but most of that came on a 60-yard touchdown completion to Osborne. Longview utilized a clock-eating offense to score on all three of its opening possessions to take a 21-10 lead at halftime. On their first series, the Lobos marched 67 yards in seven plays with Ivory converting from two yards out. The second drive covered 76 yards in 11 plays with Freeman following an Ivory block into the end zone on fourth-and-one. Ivory added his second touchdown as Longview put together a 12-play, 68-yard drive, turning a second-and-11 into a 35-yard romp through the left side of Marshall's defense. In the three drives, the Lobos were 3-for-4 on third down conversions and 2-of-2 converting fourth downs. Ivory's first touchdown and Freeman's 4-yard score gave Longview a 14-0 advantage with just 14 seconds elapsed into the start of the second quarter. It was the Mavs who used the big play to cut the deficit in half as Carswell and Osborne hooked up for a 60-yard scoring play. The drive went 63 yards in two plays as Osborne got between two Longview defenders and then used his speed, cutting to his left and into the end zone with 10:51 to play until intermission. The Lobos quickly answered, although it took converting twice on third down and once on a fourth-down call. Freeman and Ivory hooked for nine yards on third-and-six, then McGee picked up the necessary yardage on third-and-five. Facing third-and-17 from its own 48, Freeman found Adrian Reese for 16 yards, and McGee rumbled the final two yards for a first down at the Marshall 34. After a loss by McGee, Ivory broke through for a 35-yard sprint to paydirt. Zach Decker added his third of four extra points on the night. Marshall added a field goal as time expired in the half with Rigo Casas converting a 19-yard attempt. A 22-yard punt return by Justin Jones set up the Mavs up in good position at the Longview 26. A couple of Lobo penalties moved the ball to the 3, but time was running down on the clock. |