Run It Out: Fluvanna beats AHS, wins six straight to make Region 3C playoffs

BY LOGAN RIDDICK / SCRIMMAGE PLAY SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR

Fluvanna's Garrett Jordan scores on a 3-yard run early in the third quarter.

As Fluvanna County’s seniors formed a queue to walk off their home field for the last time, the vibes were so much higher than one might have anticipated as September ended. Flashback to a squad who dropped their Jefferson District opener by six touchdowns to Louisa and fell to 1-3 on the season.

“Even with the way it started, we knew we still had a playoff team,” said Fluvanna coach Mitchell Pace. “There was never a doubt that this team knew they had it in them, we just had to put it all together.”

With a win over Western to start October, the Flucos began a winning streak capped by a 48-20 Senior Night triumph over Albemarle.

“We all bought into what Coach Pace was doing and we knew we had to win six in a row,” said senior quarterback Will Lambert. “Every practice we were just going all out on one another. Battling some injuries was the hardest part. We all played our hearts out.”

Sure enough, their 7-3 regular season record clinched a spot in the Region 3C playoff bracket.

“We stressed playing clean ball, not making mistakes, not hurting ourselves, and flying around the field together, as one,” said Pace. “We’re able to practice that way and pull it off on Friday nights the last six weeks. It’s been fun.”

The stat sheet backed up Pace’s white board objectives. Fluvanna did not turn the ball over while the secondary picked off two passes. Even setting aside a big loss on an airmailed punt snap, the defensive front allowed one rushing yard.

“One of our best defensive performances was against Western where we had a high-intensity game, and that’s what we tried to recreate this week in practice,” said Pace. “Albemarle does a great job of spreading you out and they have a lot of weapons, so we needed everybody with that constant energy, tackling together, and we did it.”

Albemarle won the coin toss and opted to receive, and junior quarterback Carter Epperly led the offense down the field with four straight completions, three to JuJu Chapman. However, when he fired deep to the endzone, it was Lambert who made the grab.

“I’m stepping in for Kyle Harris who went down with an injury a couple weeks ago, and so I got big shoes to fill,” said Lambert. “I read the quarterback and just went and made a play.”

The Fluco offense exhibited Louisa-like efficiency, posting points on the board at the end of its first eight possessions before backups took the field in the fourth quarter. Junior back Garrett Jordan capped their opening 80-yard drive with a 21-yard run, breaking multiple tackles as he worked through the right side before streaking down the sideline. Jordan finished with 165 yards on 20 carries, both game-highs, and added a 3-yard score to cap Fluvanna’s opening drive of the second half. Lambert had a hand in the other four touchdowns on what proved to be a big night for the passing attack. He completed 11-of-12 for 232 yards and two scores.

“They played well on the defensive line and stymied some of our powers, so we had to look elsewhere,” said Pace. “We’re well-versed enough to where we can attack in lots of different ways.”

After Albemarle pulled within 10-7 on Epperly’s 30-yard strike to Joel Schiavone as the first quarter ended, Lambert hit Kenny Klein for 38 and tossed a screen to Jordan that gained 24 before calling his own number for a 2-yard keeper to cap Fluvanna’s 80-yard march.

It momentarily appeared a back-and-forth dynamic was developing as Chapman returned the ensuing kickoff 48 yards and the offense promptly marched into the red zone. However, the Fluco front stuffed Terrell Moore in the backfield on fourth-and-2 for a turnover on downs. It was one of four tackles-for-loss to go with three sacks on the night.

The offense took over at its own 6 and drove the field in eight plays. Facing fourth-and-3 at the AHS 27, Lambert fired to Klein beyond the sticks at the right hash, who made the catch and then turned to find no one to stop him down the middle. Fluvanna took a 24-7 lead into the break.

After Garrett’s second touchdown run made it 31-7 in the third, Albemarle’s offense sputtered with a four-and-out and then Epperly’s second interception. In between, junior kicker Dawson Raines drilled a 30-yard field goal, his second of the game after a 26-yarder in the first quarter.

“When he’s in close, he says he can’t miss,” said Pace. “We’ve been lucky to score a lot of points in the last few games, and he’s made every single PAT. That’s just a gift, those automatic ones.”

After senior Andre Key’s pick set up the offense at the AHS 42, the Flucos needed just three snaps to cash in.

“I saw a hole, cut it up in the hole, then bounced outside and had to show off the wheels a little bit,” Lambert said of his 22-yard touchdown run, part of his 36 rushing yards on five keepers. “Give it all to the o-line, it wouldn’t happen without them.”

With the score 41-7, the Epperly-to-Chapman connection hit for a 66-yard score. The Patriots also recovered the ensuing squib kickoff; however, a fourth-down sack snuffed out hopes for a rally. Lambert then wrapped up his evening with a toss to Brody Shields for a 55-yard catch-and-run score on the first play of the fourth quarter. The slippery junior wideout caught four passes for a team-high 111 yards.

Albemarle (4-6, 4-3) rounded out the scoring with an 8-yard run by Moore late in the fourth. The junior back finished with 46 yards on 12 carries. Epperly completed 14-of-33 for 270 yards, with Chapman his top target tallying 154 yards on six catches, both game-highs.

Fluvanna (7-3, 6-1) is the #7 seed in Region 3C and hits the road for a quarterfinal on Friday night at #2 Wilson Memorial.