Cards Off To A Great Start
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September 8, 2011
Running back Dalton Estes gets attacked from behind by a Davenport player during the Cardinals' home opener against the Gorillas Friday. Below: WP's new cheerleading squad shows off the moves and cheers to the home crowd.
WAITSBURG-The WP "Boys of Fall" were back in action under their Friday night lights starting the season off with a 48-18 victory over the Davenport Gorillas last Friday.
Buzz about the opening game began early in the afternoon Friday with local farmers outside the grocery store discussing who they thought would be filling in for last year's graduating seniors.
WP Cardinal fans began arriving as early as an hour before kick-off to grab their favorite spot and ensure that they didn't miss a second of the action, and it's a good thing they did.
Sicty-five seconds into the first quarter, Dalton Estes stripped the Gorillas running back of the ball and returned it 26 yards to the end zone for the Cardinals first touchdown.
"I've really got to pat Estes on the back," said head coach Jeff Bartlow. "That really got the defense going and pumped all of us up."
The defense carried that momentum into the Gorilla's second possession forcing them to punt and giving the WP offence their first appearance on the field.
The Gorillas defense broke through the Cardinal line on second-down sacking quarterback Zach Bartlow for a loss, but freshman Devin Acevedo caught a short pass from Bartlow earning the Cardinals a first down.
A holding call would make it second and 20, but Bartlow decided 20 wasn't enough. He weaved his way through defenders, breaking tackles, and sprinted 60 yards for the Cardinals second touchdown with 6:56 remaining in the first quarter.
The pumped up defense kept it coming holding the Gorillas deep in the backfield forcing them to punt once again.
WP's next possession was highlighted by an Acevedo 31-yard pass to Dustin Wooderchek for another Cardinal touchdown.
Estes and Bartlow would team up to light up the score board two more times in the second quarter to give the Cardinals a 34-0 lead at the half.
Wasting no time getting things started in the second half, Billy Brown took a Bartlow handoff and didn't stop until he found the end zone 51 yards later, giving the Cardinals a 41-0 lead, and putting the new mercy rule into effect.
With the Cardinals being up by 40 the game then went to a running clock that only stopped for time-outs, injuries and touchdowns.
At the third quarter buzzer Bartlow sparked the crowd once again with a 70 yard touchdown run giving the Cardinals a 48-0 lead and the junior varsity a chance for some varsity action.
Zach Bartlow rushed 138 total yards for two touch- downs and went 8 for 11 for 153 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Billy Brown rushed for 93 yards on eight carries with one touchdown. "Billy is real physical player," said coach Bartlow. "He's establishing himself as a runner."
"After watching our tape, we see some room for improvement with our offensive line," said Bartlow. "Our number one concern is our defensive pass coverage. That was our weakest point last year. We're looking to improve that."
"Freshman Dan Stansel blocked really well for us at fullback," said Bartlow. "He'll just keep improving for us as the year progresses."
Defensively the Cardinals held the Gorillas to 38 yards rushing and 159 yards passing.
"Davenport has a good team," said Bartlow "This was a well earned win."
Senior all-state candidate at denfensive end Eshom Estes had this to say about the game, "The boys of fall are back and are ready to go to the dome!!"
Put on your red and blue, fill up the tank, and pack a blanket for the Cardinals next game Friday, Sept. 9 in Pilot Rock at 7 p.m.
2011 WP Football Roster
Zach Bartlow (12)
Cadman Donavan(12)
Eshom Estes(12)
Greg Stearns(12)
Dustin Wooder-
chak(12)
Justin Zuger(12)
Tucker Alleman(11)
Jared Brown(11)
Alex Dill(11)
Brendon Donavan(11)
Billy Brown(11)
Dalton Estes(11)
Ben Shafer(11)
Jared Vance(11)
Riley Stevens (11)
DJ Leroue(11)
Nate Bartlow(10)
Will Garcia(10)
Dalton LaRue(10)
Trenton Kitselman(10)
Chad Pearson(10)
Nick Pearson(10)
Devin Acevado(9)
Luke Alexanko(9)
Alex Greland(9)
Owen Lanning(9)
Talen Larson(9)
Chance Leroue(9)
Nick Lindsey(9)
Tyler Shafer(9)
Daniel Stansell(9)
Jubilee Christian
Roy Ebong (11)
Jose Barajas(12)
Brice Paxon(12)
James Thompkins (11)
Julian Garcia (11)
Sterling Eastman (11)
Keigh "Biggy" Lake (11)
John Stowers-Pells (11)
Winceslaw Torrez (11)
Prescott
Manuel Aispuro (9)
Paul Zamora (9)
Newcomers: Zuger,
Cadman, Brendon, Billy,
Sterling (J.C.) Eastman Roy-EB, WR, DB,
Riley-WR
Devin--WR, Chance-
LB, Daniel-RB, LB
DB-Defensive Back
LB-Line Backer
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