In recent seasons, it wasn’t uncommon when the Potomac School Panthers quickly trailed and eventually lost to the Flint Hill Huskies in high-school football action.
Things finally changed Oct. 16.
The host Panthers indeed again fell behind the Huskies, 6-0, in the second quarter. But this time Potomac School (3-3, 1-0) responded big time and rallied to win going away, 25-6, in the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference neighborhood showdown.
The victory was Potomac School’s first over the winless Huskies (0-7, 0-3) since the 2014 season. The win snapped the Panthers’ two-game losing streak this fall.
“We talked all week before this game about perseverance and focusing on the next play, no matter what happened,” Potomac School coach C.J. Remmo said. “They jumped out on us, but then we got after it. That was good to see.”
Potomac School was ahead 14-6 at halftime on the strength of touchdown runs of six and 32 yards by Marcel Gaskins and two Stefan Harvey extra points.
Harvey added a 32-yard field goal in the third quarter to cap a 17-play drive, with Gaskins running 49 yards for his third TD in the fourth. Kevin Check then caught a two-point conversion pass from Andrew Lay on a broken play.
Gaskins had a big game, rushing for 259 yards on 27 carries. Quarterback Drew Turner ran for 21 yards and was 2 of 5 passing for 25 yards. Check had two catches for 40 yards and added one run for nine yards. Lay rushed for 22 yards and had one catch for minus yards. The Panthers had no turnovers.
Remmo was especially satisfied with the play of team’s offensive line, which was without two injured starters.
“It was great effort play by all the guys, and they got after them,” Remmo said.
That line consists of Check and Adian Culliman as the tight ends and linemen Jackson Ferris, Bryce Hall, Tyler Judd, Hudson La Force and Jack Wade.
Check, La Force and Max Revis were among defensive standouts for Potomac School. Lay had a fumble recovery. La Force had 15 total tackles, one for a loss; Ravis had seven tackles, Anwar Karim had five tackles and seven assists, and Check had a tackle for a loss, as did Holden Smith.
For Flint Hill, Bryson Robertson rushed for 42 yards and scored on a six-yard run, capping a 12-play drive. Mert Guney was 13 of 18 passing for 118 yards and he rushed for 16 yards. Andrew King had six catches for 35 yards, Elijah Harris caught three for 49 and Bryce Stewart two for 20.