Just a week after their first loss of the season, Western Albemarle returned to the field to host a Goochland squad that was off to an 0-3 start to the 2022 football season.

Despite entering the contest with their worst beginning to a season since 2000, the Bulldogs put on a solid performance keeping Western Albemarle off the scoreboard for nearly the final 40 minutes of the contest. The Warriors were just as impressive as their defense held their opposition to just a field goal on the night.

The defensive slugfest ultimately came down to a handful of errors resulting in Western Albemarle improving to 3-1 on the season while Goochland was left still searching for their first victory of the season.

Here we’ll review the action that took place on Friday...

KEY TO VICTORY

Remain Disciplined

In a close knit contest, it would be easy for a team to come unraveled when things don't go their way. In this contest, Western Albemarle stuck to the fundamentals and kept their head down and continued to work when adversity struck.

As both offenses struggled throughout the contest, Western found themselves in a not so pleasant situation late in the third quarter. An errant snap by the center went past quarterback Nathan Simon, who stood in the shotgun formation, pinning Western Albemarle on their own one yard line. A one yard run by Kyle Keyton on third down gave punter Carter Boyd a little breathing room on fourth down.

A minimal gain by the Goochland punt returner allowed the Bulldogs to start their drive on the opponent's 33 yard line. Goochland wasted no time going for the big play as Darius Rivers launched a pair of passes towards the endzone. Both time, however, the Warriors defense kept tight coverage and didn't allow the short field to change their mindset.

An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by a Goochland receiver moved the Bulldogs out of scoring range, leaving the score unchanged during the series of events. Throughout the contest, Western's defense stepped up and remained in control despite Goochland knocking on the door on multiple occasions.

One Dimensional Offense

The Warriors defense found themselves pitted against the Bulldogs offense on multiple occasions down the stretch. Each time, Western Albemarle was able to end Goochland's efforts by forcing a punt or turnover on downs. The Bulldogs found success in the run game behind Jamason Pryor who rushed for 132 yards on the night but were unable to extend the success in other avenues.

Freddie Von Lewinski came up with a fumble recovery for the Warriors early in the second half when the Bulldogs attempted to spell Pryor. Keyton led a defensive front that constantly found themselves in the backfield when Rivers dropped back to pass. Other than their senior running back, the Bulldogs managed just 15 rushing yards on seven rushing attempts and 11 passing yards on the night. The one-dimensional and, in reality, one pronged attack for Goochland was not sustainable and unsuccessful against the stout Western Albemarle defense.

Stay the Course

When things aren't delivering the expected results, oftentimes coaches will change direction. That wasn't the case, however for Western Albemarle and head coach Ed Redmond. After scoring a touchdown late in the opening quarter, the Warriors offense had trouble moving the chains against the Goochland defense.

Rather than changing course, however, Redmond and the Warriors offense continued to pound the football behind their offensive line. Keyton along with fellow senior Bubba Shifflett combined for 138 rushing yards on 29 attempts. In the end, it was Keyton who extended the Warriors final drive as he rushed on five straight attempts behind offensive linemen Kainan Miller and Ross Bassett to preserve the victory as Western Albemarle was able to run out the game clock.

SCORING SUMMARY

Goochland--0 3 0 0--3

Western Albemarle--7 0 0 0--7

1st Quarter

WA--Kyle Keyton 2 yard run (Ben Dougald kick), 3:56

2nd Quarter

G--Tyler Black 32 yard field goal

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Kyle Keyton, Western Albemarle...While the senior was the only player from either team to cross the endzone for a touchdown, Keyton was a key performer in the game on both sides of the ball for the Warriors. Offensively, the class of 2023 standout rushed 15 times for 54 yards and helped his team ensure the victory by converting a pair of key first down opportunities on the teams final drive with his powerful running on the right side of the offense. Keyton also factored in heavily on defense playing along the defensive front and found himself constantly disrupting the backfield as Goochland was unable to get much going offensively.

LOOKING AHEAD

This week, Goochland plays host to a struggling Fluvanna County squad. Both teams enter the contest with an 0-4 record meaning one of the schools will end the night with their first victory of the season. The Flying Flucos have allowed an average of nearly 50 points per contest through their first four games which bodes well for a Bulldogs offense that is still working to hit on all cylinders. Another positive note for Goochland is that the team has won nine consecutive head-to-head contests between the two teams.

Western Albemarle goes on the road to face Wilson Memorial who suffered their first loss of the 2022 season last week against Spotswood. Both the Hornets and the Warriors will enter their final non-district contest of the season with a 3-1 record. After allowing just eight points in their first two games of the season, Wilson Memorial has allowed 62 points in their last two outings. The matchup that many will have their eyes on in this game is between a Warriors defense that is only allowing 12 points per contest against a Hornets team that is scoring nearly 33 points each outing. These two squads have met just five times in the past with the Warriors claiming victory in all five, including a 30-6 defeat over the Hornets a year ago.

Robert lives in Charlottesville and has been contributing to VirginiaPreps.com since 2013. He began working in the sports media in 2006 and now covers public and private schools throughout Virginia with a focus in the Piedmont area. His goal is to tell the players stories and provide top notch coverage to the community for area teams.

If you have suggestions or comments, please let us know. Information can be emailed to bigrob2523@gmail.com and you can find him on twitter @bigrob2523