STORY: Grafton 22, Bruton 7

[Lynn Burke]

Grafton knocks off Bruton 22-7
HRvarsity.com staff

YORK — Austin Sneath scored two touchdowns, one on an 81-yard run and the other on a 32-yard pass from Sean Downing, as Grafton beat Bruton 22-7 Friday night in a Bay Rivers District game at Bruton.

The victory was Grafton’s second straight since a season-opening loss against Tabb. Bruton had beaten New Kent in its opener.

On his first touchdown, Sneath broke around left end, cut back through the middle of the field and rolled down the right sideline midway through the first quarter.

On the second score, Downing got pressure from Bruton’s defense, eluded two tacklers and dumped the ball off to Sneath in the right flat. That score came with 43 seconds left in the third quarter.

Bruton had taken a 7-6 lead near the end of the first quarter when Brett Burks scored from a yard out and Eric Jenkins kicked the extra point. Grafton’s try had failed, but Jarod Brown made up for it when he kicked a 32-yard field goal with 9:49 left in the first half.

Downing sealed the victory by completing a 30-yard pass to C.J. Ward halfway through the fourth quarter. Ward jumped over a defender to make the catch at the 2 and fell into the end zone.

GRAFTON 22, BRUTON 7
Grafton 6376 — 22
Bruton 7000— 7

G- Sneath 81 run (kick failed)
B- Burks 1 run (Jenkins kick)
G- Brown 32-yard FG
G- Sneath 32 pass from Downing (Brown kick
G- Ward 30 pass from Downing (pass failed)
G B
First downs 15 8
Rushes-yards 33-163 33-112
Passing yards 159 21
Comp.-att.-ints 9-19-1 4-18-0
Penalties-yards 4-30 4-20
Fumbles-lost 3-2 4-1

[BayRvrDis1]

It was good to see a more balanced Grafton offense (33 rushes - 19 passes). That's what the Clippers need to allow them to achieve the greatest possible success. The rain made field conditions miserable. However, the Clipper defense showed improvement over previous weeks. Downing got rocked at the end of the second on a missed field goal, but, showed what he was made of when he returned to the ball game and turned in a gutty second half performance. Sneath is proving that he can be counted on with consistency to make some big plays. The Clippers are improving with each outing!

[AnotherGraftonDad]

It was good to see a more balanced Grafton offense (33 rushes - 19 passes). That's what the Clippers need to allow them to achieve the greatest possible success. The rain made field conditions miserable. However, the Clipper defense showed improvement over previous weeks. Downing got rocked at the end of the second on a missed field goal, but, showed what he was made of when he returned to the ball game and turned in a gutty second half performance. Sneath is proving that he can be counted on with consistency to make some big plays. The Clippers are improving with each outing!

I think in some areas we did not perform as well as against Jamestown. Maybe the weather played a role in that but we can't have the same penalties and mental errors against the Bulls this week. They gave the Rams all they could handle so we need a complete game to win it. We also had quite a few guys nicked up in the game and I hope they're able to bounce back. Coach Montini and his staff are doing a great job mixing it up and will get the Clippers ready to run over the Bulls!

[GraftonDad08]

I agree with you AnotherGraftonDad. Grafton did improve play on both sides of the ball. Especially the passing game and defensively. If they continue to improve each week, they will be tough to beat. Poquoson played Lafayette well and will provide a stern test for Grafton next Saturday. I'm confident that Coach Montini will have the Clippers prepared.