The chance of someone finding something completely dry out in the elements on this rainy Friday night was about the same as Princeton winning this Carolina Conference football because of the play of Ayden-Grifton offensively and defensively.
Ayden-Grifton coach Paul Cornwell decided for the Chargers to be one of the few programs in eastern North Carolina to play its football game because he didn't want to push back the contest to Monday and set up short time to prepare for North Johnston with the conference championship at stake. Cornwell's team took the same approach it's used to win seven games in 10 tries.
"I am a pound-the-rock kind of guy," said Cornwell, whose team is 7-3 overall and 3-1 in the Carolina Conference.
Josh Hunter and J.D. Strickland did most of the pounding between the tackles, combining for 101 yards primarily on dive plays like Strickland's that went for a 14-yard touchdown run to cap a 24-point second quarter.
Perseus Williams and Jeremy Hardy had the honors of taking sweep plays around the end, which both did effectively, including Williams' 44-yard run for Ayden-Grifton's first touchdown. Williams had what would have been a 70-yard TD run erased by a penalty, but he still gained 149 yards on just 10 carries.
Princeton (2-8, 0-4) finished the first half with minus-14 yards. The Bulldogs' longest play went for just 10 yards until tailback Gerrell Bogle broke through Ayden-Grifton's line of second-string defenders for an 81-yard gain. Jarvis Murphy made a touchdown-saving tackle at the Ayden-Grifton 15-yard line. Princeton ran three more plays and advanced the football to the 1, but time ran out and the Chargers' reserves kept the shutout — their third of the season — intact.
"They showed a lot of toughness to have that big stand there at the end," Cornwell said. "That's pride. That's not trying to give up the score. Those guys practice hard every day. They wanted to make a play when they were in the game."
Cornwell is looking for his athletes to make plays next weekd against North Johnston, which had its game at Spring Creek postponed until Monday. Next Friday night's ballgame in Kenly is a must-win for the Chargers if they want a share of the league title because they lost last week at North Duplin.
"Our goals are still in front of us," Cornwell said. "We've still got a chance to win a conference championship. We've got to take care of business and we may need some help. We've got to come out and fight. We did a pretty good job of that tonight. I hope next week we'll come out with the same intensity and hopefully get another win."
