| Tigers Trample Tomcats by Jimmy Walker Four scores and 129 yards ago, Rodney Boykin set forth on the gridiron to destroy the Ashland Tomcats. And he brought a ship full of teammates along to help explore the possibilities. Along with running mates Gabriel Lewis and Terry Royal and an outstanding offensive line, Boykin helped lead the Ironton Tigers to a 34-2 clawing of the cross-river rival Ashland on the continent of Tank Memorial Stadium friday night. The 5-9 195 pound minitiature tank bruised the Ashland defense for 129 yards on 28 carries and scored four touchdowns in the second half to help Ironton pull away from the Tomcats after leading only 7-2 at the half. All Lewis did was run for l83 yards on 18 carries and score a TD. Oh, thats all! "Our backs ran hard tonight," said Ironton coach Bob Lutz. "They just did a super job. Boykin and Lewis punished people. Royal didn't carry the ball that much but he ran very hard." The offensive line of Robert Clay, Darryl Womack, Joe Hacker, Dan Bryant, Joe Singleton, Darwin Conwell, Larry Lambert, Marty Scior, Tim Hodges and Joe Fletcher constantly blew out the Ashland defense in the second half. "The offensive line did a good job. There were times when it looked like we didn't get anything, but there were big pileups of people where the line had pushed Ashland's line back five yards," commented Lutz. Ashland was unable to move the ball after receiving the opening kickoff, although they got a first down after the punter fumbled a snap and ran for the necessary yardage. They punted successfully the next time and Ironton took over at the 27 yard line. It was Lewis who discovered this small but coveted land called the end zone. On the first play from scrimmage, he dashed 73 yards off tackle and twisted his way into the secondary and down the middle of the field and got a good block from Hodges to send him into the promised land. Fletcher added the extra point and Ironton led 7-0 with 6:48 on the clock. Ashland got on the scoreboard when it blocked a punt and the ball bounced into the endzone. No one was able to get a hold on the slippery pigskin and it rolled harmlessly out of bounds for a safety. The Tomcats threatened twice in the second period but couldn't capitalize. Quarterback Scott Borders hit Bill Johnson with a 39 yard pass but Johnson fumbled the ball when he was tackled and Lewis picked up the ball at the four yard line. The second quarter also saw Ironton throw two interceptions and get assessed 74 yards in penalties and they spent most of their time on defense. When they had the ball, it seemed like it was always in their own backyard around the 10 to 30 yard lines. "once we got over our mistakes, we were alright," commented Lutz. "We didn't make any mistakes in the second half and the defense just did a super job all night." The best job was in the closing seconds of the first half when Johnson intercepted a pass and returned it to the Ironton 2 yard line. But with just 44 seconds remaining in the half and no time outs, the Tomcats were unable to penetrate the Ironton line after two tries and had to settle for the 7-2 halftime score. With the mistakes ironed out, Ironton took the second half kickoff and put together a 66 yard drive, all on the ground, and used nine minutes of the clock before Boykin capped the drive with a one yard run. Fletcher kicked the point after and it was 14-2. Ashland ran three plays and punted. That was their offense the third period. Ironton, on the other hand, just started another march. This time the Tigers went 61 yards in ten plays with Boykin getting the final three with 9:07 left to play. Fletcher hit the extra point and it was a comfortable 21-2 lead. Fletcher then recovered a fumble caused by a jarring hit by Clay and the Tigers went 31 yards in just four plays with Boykin again crossing the goal line. Fletchers fourth kick made it 28-2 with 6:18 to play. It was Boykin just one more time as he pounded his way in from one yard out with 2:03 to play. The kick was blocked and the Tigers had opened their season with a resounding win. The Tigers had 16 first downs to Ashland's 4 and outrushed their counterparts 343-96. Borders hit 2 of 10 passes with one interception for 47 yards. Ironton failed to connect on 3 attempts. Ironton fumbled once and lost it while Ashland lost 4 of 7 fumbles. Back to 78 Tigers |