Local Sports

PHS dominates Riverside for 3rd straight W

QUINCY -- Parkersburg made sure to get its money’s worth Friday night, especially with how gas prices are and making the long drive from Wood County to Kanawha County.

The Big Reds earned their third consecutive victory by knocking out Riverside, 69-20, in Quincy.

Parkersburg put up 528 yards of offense, compared to Riverside’s 234 yards.

“I was worried about a letdown after such a big win last week,” Parkersburg coach Matt Kimes said. “With the momentum, we had to keep that coming into this game. Could we sustain it? Could we replicate and duplicate how we played last week? That was the challenge. We came out and played well in the first quarter.

“Kind of put them on their heels a little bit and took over from there.”

Riverside started its season 2-1 but has since dropped its last two, with the other loss coming last week to Nitro.

The Warriors struggled to gain any sort of momentum, which, in large part, was due to Parkersburg jumping out on Riverside early in the first half.

“They were physical,” Riverside coach Michael Terrell said. “We were missing blocks and had the first drive off that opening kickoff looking great. We came down and put a drive together, then we put ourselves behind the chains.”

Parkersburg saw several players emerge in the 49-point victory.

However, Gavin Bowman made his presence known on the offensive side of the football.

Bowman racked up three touchdowns, with two coming in the second half.

He also recorded 152 rushing yards.

“We’ve known he’s had that big-play potential all year long,” Kimes said. “Just having the ability to get him a crease and show him what to do. He did that in JV last season. We knew he had the potential to do it. Now, it’s good to see him be able to do it in a Friday-night-light atmosphere and make big plays.”

Riverside received the opening kickoff and saw Kyler Beard return it 52 yards inside Parkersburg’s 30-yard line.

However, the Warriors’ opening offensive drive stalled and they turned the ball over on downs.

From there, Parkersburg assumed dominance, scoring on all of its first-half drives.

Alex Greer, Brady Thorn, Javel Chandler and Bowman all got a piece of the scoring pie for the Big Reds in the first half.

Thorn and Chandler’s touchdowns came from the arm of quarterback Noah Smith. Thorn’s touchdown went for 51 yards, while Chandler’s was a 24-yard score.

Smith finished Friday’s contest completing 12 of 16 passes for 218 yards and four touchdowns.

Parkersburg’s second touchdown of the game was a 30-yard pick-six by sophomore Tyreke Glover with 7:35 left.

Riverside did cut into Parkersburg’s lead, 28-6, with 4:58 left in the second quarter on a 22-yard touchdown by quarterback Jaidon Clark.

“We’re getting better at the things that we’re doing well,” Terrell said. “We’ve got to figure out a way to throw the ball a little bit better than we’re doing. That’ll keep us from getting behind the chains and sticks sometimes. We have to continue getting better at the good things that we do well.”

Bowman’s touchdown on a 6-yard run pushed the Big Reds’ margin out to 29 at 35-6, giving Parkersburg a comfortable lead at the break.

Parkersburg amassed 274 yards of offense in the first half, while Riverside accumulated 102 yards.

The Warriors only had four plays of more than 10 yards, while the Big Reds had 13.

Bowman scored two of the Big Reds’ first three touchdowns of the second half.

He had touchdown runs of 40 and 80 yards to push Parkersburg’s lead out to 55-14.

Riverside did get one final score with 5:01 left in the third quarter when Ethan Scruggs connected with Auric Booker for a 15-yard touchdown.

Smith put up two more touchdown throws in the second half, one going to Karsen Kimes for 14 yards and the other to Carter Smith for 10 yards.

Cam Bulger got Riverside’s final touchdown of the game, as he rushed in a 3-yard score for the Warriors, making it 62-20.