TARBORO — Senior quarterback Jaylen Hewitt threw for 478 yards and four touchdowns as Class 3A Havelock defeated Class 3A Tarboro 47-23 in a nonconference battle featuring two of the state’s perennial powers on Thursday night at Vikings Stadium.
Hewitt overcame two interceptions and tossed TD passes of 4 and 46 yards to Kendrick Kelly, 14 yards to Jalen Morgan and 11 yards to Jonathan Williams as the Rams improved to 4-1 overall. Hewitt ended up 25 of 43 through the air as Kelly caught 10 passes for 223 yards, Morgan added seven catches for 165 yards and Williams collected seven aerials for 79 yards.
Havelock, which came into the contest ranked No. 7 in the Class 3A East, finished with 568 yards of offense to 287 for Tarboro (4-1 overall), 228 of it on the ground.
Jaylen Howard added 90 yards and two scores rushing for the Rams.
The Rams took their opening possession and drove to the Tarboro 38-yard line before the home team forced consecutive incompletions on third down.
The Vikings (ranked No. 1 in the Class 1A East) couldn’t have asked for a better start on offense. On the first play following change of possession, Kamerin McDowell-Moore burst through the middle and raced 63 yards for the TD with 10 minutes left in the first quarter. Mason Satterfield’s two-point conversion run made it 8-0.
The Tarboro secondary gave up chunks of yardage to Hewitt but made big plays on the Rams’ first three possessions.
Hewitt completed two passes on Havelock’s next drive, but he was intercepted by Caiden Everette inside the Tarboro 30. Everette returned it 21 yards to the Rams’ 47 but the home team couldn’t move and had to punt.
Again, Hewitt directed Havelock down the field in 12 plays with three completions and the running of Howard. But the Viking defense came through again as McDowell-Moore picked off Hewitt to end the possession.
Tarboro drove from midfield to the Havelock 10 in 10 plays before having to settle for a 27-yard field goal that was wide left.
The Rams went 80 yards in just six plays as Howard capped the drive with a 13-yard TD run. The conversion run failed, leaving the score 8-6.
After a Tarboro punt, Havelock marched 66 yards in six plays as Williams went in from four yards with 1:19 left in the first half. Jalen Morgan’s conversion run gave the Rams a 14-8 edge, which they took into halftime.
Tarboro regained the lead, 15-14, on its first possession of the third quarter. The Vikings drove 65 yards in six plays with quarterback Tyler Powell sneaking in from the 1. Cole Craddock added the extra point.
Havelock then exploded for 33 consecutive points.
A 76-yard drive in seven plays ended with a five-yard TD run from Howard, and the failed conversion left the Rams with a 20-15 lead.
A punt by Tarboro led to the Rams going 89 yards in eight plays as Hewitt hooked up with Kelly for passes covering 24, 18, 25 and 18 yards. The duo’s fifth completion went for four yards and the TD, and the conversion pass was unsuccessful but Havelock had a 26-15 lead.
Tarboro fumbled on the first play of its next possession and Havelock recovered at the Vikings’ 46. Hewitt then found Kelly for a 46-yard TD and Gabe Depuy kicked the extra point for a 33-15 Havelock lead with 3:22 remaining in the third quarter.
Things went from bad to worse for Tarboro. Havelock tried an onsides kick that they recovered at its own 47. Hewitt found Morgan for 31 yards, and a pass interference penalty moved it to the 14. Hewitt then tossed a 14-yard strike to Morgan in the end zone and Depuy’s PAT made it 40-15 with 2:46 left in the third quarter.
After another Tarboro punt, Havelock went 47 yards in seven plays, the final one being an 11-yard TD pass from Hewitt to Williams. Depuy’s extra point with 11:54 left in the game pushed the Rams’ lead to 47-15.
Tarboro completed its scoring on its next possession. The Vikings drove 68 yards in eight plays as McDowell-Moore had a 36-yard pass reception and Mason Satterfield finished it off with a 17-yard TD run with 7:59 left. McDowell-Moore added the conversion run.
McDowell-Moore (13 carries, 112 yards) and Satterfield (18-98) led the Tarboro rushing attack, and Powell completed 4 of 11 passes for 59 yards.
OTHER RESULTS North Edgecombe 42, RMP 6The Warriors won their first game of the season while scoring their first points in a Tar Roanoke 1A Conference victory at home in Leggett on Thursday night.
North Edgecombe improved to 1-2 in the TRC and 1-4 overall, while Rocky Mount Prep dropped to 0-3 in the league and 0-4 overall. The six points by the Jaguars are their only points to date.
North Edgecombe rushed for 327 yards on 33 carries (9.9 yards per carry) as Jahmarie Dickens led the way with 101 yards and two TD on just nine carries while Rashid Deloatch added 61 yards on six attempts. Also running well for the Warriors were Michael Dickens (3-59) and Zyquarius Cherry (3-56-TD).
North Edgecombe led 14-0 at the end of the first quarter and 36-6 at halftime as RMP scored its lone points in the second stanza. The Warriors added a score in the fourth quarter.
Emmanuel Coley paced the North Edgecombe defense with 13 tackles (10 solo) while Kymari Porter added eight tackles (one for loss), Tristan Alexander chipped in with six tackles (two for loss) and Andrew Webb had four tackles (two for loss).
Coley and Alexander recorded sacks while Jahmarie Dickens and Ra’kel Ricks recovered fumbles for the Warrior defense.
Northern Nash 56, Bunn 6
The Knights improved to 5-0 overall and 1-0 in the Big East 2A/3A Conference behind a combined five touchdowns from Myles Eatmon (three) and Brian Strickland on their way to a road win over the Wildcats on Thursday night in Bunn.
Southern Nash 54, Roanoke Rapids 7
The Firebirds used a big first half to remain unbeaten as they rolled past the previously-undefeated Yellow Jackets on the road on Thursday night.
Southern Nash emerged 2-0 in the league and 6-0 overall, while Roanoke Rapids fell to 1-1 in conference play and 5-1 overall.
Nash Central 42, Franklinton 0
The Bulldogs evened their Big East 2A/3A Conference record (1-1) and improved to 3-2 overall with a shutout over the Red Rams on Thursday at home.
RMA 35, St. David’s 12
The Eagles earned their third win of the season by getting past the Warriors in a Carolina Independent Conference game at home on Thursday night.
RMA improved to 3-4 overall and 3-2 in conference play, while St. David’s fell to 1-3 in conference and 3-3 overall.
SWE 37, Greene Central 22
SouthWest Edgecombe evened its Eastern Plains 2A Conference record at 1-1 and emerged 4-2 overall with a 15-point victory on the road against the Rams in Snow Hill on Thursday night.
Greene Central dropped to 0-2 in the EPC and 3-3 overall.
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