Prairie Ridge derails Hampshire
No, Samson Evans didn't sell concessions at halftime.
The Prairie Ridge sophomore sensation did just about everything else a player could do on the field.
Evans scored on 2 kick returns, ran for a touchdown and threw for a score as the Wolves cruised past Hampshire 77-27 in Fox Valley Conference Fox Division action in Crystal Lake Friday night.
"Samson Evans is a an amazing athlete and he is only a sophomore," said PR coach Chris Schrempf. "I get to see him to do amazing things in practice every day. He is a special player."
Evans set the tone for the game on the opening kickoff. He took the ball at the goal line and raced unscathed 100 yards to give PR a 7-0 lead with only 13 seconds elapsed in the game.
Later in the quarter, Evans' punt returning skills were on display as he raced 47 yards for a score with 6:26 left in the first quarter to give PR (6-1, 5-0) a 14-0 lead.
Later in the game, Evans ran for a 31 yard touchdown and tossed a 50-yard touchdown to Dean Brown. Evans completed 7-of-10 passes for 195 yards and a score.
"That was his best game passing," said Schrempf. "He really threw the ball well."
Evans got plenty of help from senior running back Nathan Griffin, who gained 152 yards on 21 carries with 4 scores.
Brown grabbed 5 passes for 129 yards and a score.
In a losing cause, Hampshire (4-3, 2-2) got great efforts from quarterback Jacob Vincent and receiver Jared Hornbeck.
Vincent completed 15-of-33 passes for 305 yards with 2 interceptions and 3 TDs, all to Hornbeck.
Hornbeck grabbed 8 passes for 247 yards with TD receptions of 70, 75 and 4 yards.
Running back Jared Lund, who scored the other TD for the Whip-Purs on a 20-yard run, gained 73 yards on 12 carries.
Trailing PR 43-13 at halftime, the Whip-Purs scored on their first possession of the second half as Vincent drilled a 4-yard TD pass to Hornbeck with 7:30 left in the quarter to make the score 43-19. The 2-point conversion failed.
"I am very proud of the kids the way they fought back in the second half and scored on the first possession of the half," said Hampshire coach Mike Brasile. "They just fought their tails off the whole game. A great effort by our kids."