Carver rolls over Helen Cox, 29-0

The Carver Rams put in a dominating performance Friday night at Joe Brown Stadium, downing the Helen Cox Cougars, 29-0.

It was an important win for the Rams as they shake off the rust of a lockdown-ridden offseason and look to compete in their upcoming conference slate.

“[This win] is going to be huge for these guys,” said Carver head coach Byron Addison. “This is a group of kids that didn’t have a spring or a summer. For them to get this kind of win is good for their confidence. Any time you can beat a team like Helen Cox is going to be huge moving forward for this group of guys.”

In his first season as a Carver starting quarterback, Lloyd Robinson was the star performer. The senior completed an efficient 11 of 16 passes for 157 yards and three touchdowns. Junior receiver Gregory Emery was Robinson’s primary target, catching three passes for 63 yards and two touchdowns.

“Tonight, Lloyd did pretty well,” Addison said. “He made some errors, but that’s a first-time quarterback. With him, the more he plays, the better he’s going to be.”

While Cox did not score in the game, they did run the ball well for periods. The team accumulated 144 rushing yards on 27 carries. Juniors Amari Dunbar and Kolby Sullen were the Cougars’ leading rushers. Dunbar picked up 64 yards on 12 carries, while Sullen rushed for 53 yards on 11 carries.

While Carver dominated most of the game, it didn’t start brightly for the Rams. They fumbled the opening kick-off of the game and turned possession over to Cox on their own 42-yard line. Just two plays later, Carver senior cornerback Lawrence Lambert atoned for his team’s mistake with an interception.

The Carver offense then went three-and-out on its opening drive and pinned Cox deep in its own territory with a punt. It was at this point that things went south for the Cougars. Two plays and two fumbled snaps later, the Cougars fell on the ball in their own end zone for a safety.

After a poor kick-off, Carver took over for its next possession at the Cox 42. Two plays later, Robinson found senior wide receiver Lynarise Elpheage, Jr. in the end zone on a 33-yard pass. After a three-and-out from the Carver defense, the Rams once again struck quickly with a 12-yard Cortez Williams touchdown run to make the score 15-0 with 4:32 remaining in the first quarter.

The two teams traded possessions for the remainder of the first half before Carver struck again with a 30-yard touchdown pass from Robinson to Emery with 30 seconds remaining before halftime to make the score 22-0.

Cox opened the second half with a three-and-out on offense. Carver made quick work of their first drive of the second half, scoring with a 13-yard Robinson to Emery touchdown pass on just the fourth play of a 47-yard drive.

After going up 29-0, Carver substituted a few starters out of the game and cruised comfortably to the victory. Cox threatened to score with just under two minutes remaining in the game, but a fumble on the Carver 10-yard line saw the Cougars end their effort scoreless.

Carver will open its conference campaign at Joe Brown Stadium against Eleanor McClain next Friday night, while Cox will look to pick up its first win of the season in its first conference game on the road against Belle Chasse.