Springers unite after tragedy

John Saunders intercepted two passes on defense. He popped off runs of 56 and 73 yards on offense and finished with 174 yards rushing.

And the thing of which he was most proud after fifth-ranked Highland Springs rolled past visiting Lee-Davis 49-14 in a Capital District game last night?

"I was most proud of the victory," he said. "Despite my stats, it's all about the team. We came together as a team and played Springer football."

Togetherness was pretty much a theme in a lot of ways for the Springers (3-0, 6-1), who had an ample list of co-stars:

• Martin Smith Jr. had two of the Springers' five first-half interceptions;

• Quarterback JaQuan Burchette was 10 of 12 passing for 250 yards and four touchdowns, two to Wyatt Johnson;

• Deshawn Holmes returned an interception for a 49-yard touchdown and recovered a blocked punt and returned it 11 yards for a touchdown.

And then there was Antoine Wilkerson, whose 28-year-old sister, Latasha N. Davis, and two children, 8-year-old Jazmine Whisnant and 3-year-old Jamie L. Whisnant Jr., died in a fire at their home Tuesday.

Wilkerson scored a 4-yard touchdown on a screen pass and blocked the punt that Holmes picked up for the touchdown.

"We sort of rallied around him this week," Saunders said. "As a team, we knew he needed our love and support."

Said Highland Springs coach Loren Johnson: "We wanted to make sure that he crossed that end-zone line."

Lee-Davis (1-3, 3-4) is one of the top passing teams in the Central Region. Quarterback Phillip Gardner came in as the area's second-leading passer, averaging 247.2 yards.

The Springers set the tone for the night by intercepting Gardner on the Confederates' first three possessions. He finished 11 of 29 for 96 yards.

"We tweaked what we did a little bit," Johnson said of the Springers' cover 3 defensive scheme. "We didn't just line up three deep with five underneath. We had some guys roaming around.

"The kids certainly broke on the ball. John Saunders broke on his first interception, but he's a Division I corner. We expect him to do those things."

Saunders, a 5-10, 176-pound senior, also is a pretty good running back. He had 165 yards in the first half, helping the Springers overcome a ton of penalties.

With 33 seconds left in the first half and Highland Springs on its 6-yard line, Saunders ripped off a 73-yard run. That led to Burchette's 1-yard sneak with :00.1 on the clock that gave the Springers a 27-0 lead.

"A couple of big plays and the interception [for the TD] put us down 27-0," Lee-Davis coach Jason Meade said. "That's a tough hole for our kids. We're still a young team. We're still learning how to compete and how to overcome some adversity."

The Confederates, who took fourth-ranked Varina to overtime before losing 25-24, scored on Gardner's 4-yard run with 3:34 left in the fourth quarter. They added another TD when Emmit Atkins recovered a blocked punt in the end zone with 35 seconds left.

The Springers, meanwhile, marched toward another showdown with Varina in the season finale for what likely will be the district title and an automatic Division 6 playoff berth.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, we were about an 8½," Saunders said. "We've still got a little ways to go, but we're getting there."

Lee-Davis  0 0 0 14 -- 14
Highland Springs  7 20 22 0 -- 49

HS -- Holmes 49 interception return (Portillo kick)

HS -- Johnson 29 pass from Burchette (Portillo kick)

HS -- Johnson 31 pass from Burchette (Portillo kick)

HS -- Burchette 1 run (kick failed)

HS -- Wilkerson 4 pass from Burchette (Carter run)

HS -- Holmes 11 return on blocked punt (Moore kick)

HS -- Pugh 18 pass from Burchette (Moore kick)

LD -- Gardner 4 run (Castelvecchi kick)

LD -- Atkins recovered blocked punt in end zone (Castelvecchi kick)

RUSHING

Lee-Davis -- Gardner 2 carries, 13 yards, Atkins 6-9, Scott 3minus-2, Angus 1minus-2; Highland Springs -- Saunders 15-174, Burchette 9-16, Wilkerson 2-4, Thompson 7minus-1, Holmes 1minus-3.

PASSING

Lee-Davis -- Gardner 11 completions, 29 attempts, 96 yards, 0 TDs, 5 interceptions; Highland Springs -- Burchette 10-12-250-4-0.

RECEIVING

Lee-Davis -- Becker 6 catches, 62 yards, Connerley 2-18, Atkins 1-13, Angus 1-3, Scott 1-0; Highland Springs -- Johnson 4-146, Carter 2-59, Pugh 3-41, Wilkerson 1-4.