Marshall shines for Porters Chapel in win
Published 1:16 am Saturday, October 16, 2010
Chris Marshall caught a short pass around the 45-yard line, then did what he does.
The Porters Chapel senior weaved through five defenders, stopped on a dime to juke another, then sprinted past a couple more as if they were standing still. When a Riverfield player finally, miraculously, got a hand on Marshall’s ankle and tripped him up, the receiver merely turned it into another juke move and a touchdown.
In other words, it was a normal Friday night.
Marshall caught four passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for another 33 yards and intercepted three passes on defense. He even threw in a 20-yard completion out of the wildcat formation for good measure to spearhead PCA’s 35-12 win over Riverfield.
“Another day at the office for that young man. That guy will make plays not only at this level, but at the next level,” PCA coach John Weaver said. “He didn’t break ankles out there. He broke hearts.”
Marshall was the star of the game, but had plenty of support.
Jonah Masterson completed 9 of 13 passes for 155 yards and two TDs, and added another score on the ground. Jake Boyd and Montana McDaniel each scored a rushing touchdown as well, as the Eagles (5-4) earned a win on senior night.
Cole Mills rushed for 162 yards and a touchdown for Riverfield (4-5).
“The game was all right. The interceptions were big,” Marshall said. “But the only thing on my mind was winning this game and sending our seniors out with a bang.”
Marshall made a big bang by blowing up Riverfield on both sides of the ball.
He caught a 31-yard pass on PCA’s first drive to set up a 4-yard TD run by McDaniel, then had another reception in the red zone to set up an 11-yard scoring run by Boyd. In the second quarter, he took a short pass and turned it into a 51-yard touchdown with a series of starts, stops and jukes to give PCA a 21-6 halftime lead.
Marshall, playing cornerback, also ended Riverfield’s last three drives of the first half with interceptions.
“He’s good,” Riverfield coach Joe Meeks said. “He caught that little pass and I saw five of ours laying on the ground.”
In the third, Marshall added the dagger.
After a botched onside kick gave PCA the ball at the Riverfield 44 to open the second half, the Eagles quickly moved it to the 21-yard line. On third-and-3, Masterson lofted a fade toward Marshall, who caught it at the 2 with his back to the end zone, made a subtle juke move with his shoulder and then turned and took two steps across the goal line.