New Kent demolishes York in impressive homecoming victory

New Kent’s Dayton Meekins (5) runs away from York’s Logan Turner (3) on the way to a touchdown score.

Robb Johnson photo

New Kent was picked to finish in the middle of the pack in the Bay Rivers District. Apparently, the Trojans needed a statement win to show that they weren’t average. Friday night’s homecoming festivities was the moment for the Trojans to shine.

Behind quarterback Ben Christian’s three rushing touchdowns and one touchdown via the air, New Kent’s Trojans coasted to a 40-6 victory over the visiting York Falcons during Friday night’s football contest.

New Kent struck early in the contest after forcing York to punt the ball. The Trojans marched down the field, capping the drive with Christian’s 11-yard scamper at the 5:35 mark to give the hosts a quick 7-0 lead.

York’s best offensive drive of the night came late in the first. What was thought to be a York turnover resulted in a New Kent penalty, resulting in the Falcons retaining the possession and moving closer to a score. York capitalized, with Seamus Cassidy’s 10-yard run at the beginning of the second quarter to cap off the drive. A blocked kick attempt on the extra point resulted in New Kent maintaining the lead 7-6.

That touchdown would be the only score of the night for the visitors, as the Trojans began an onslaught of offense against the Falcons. Less than three minutes after York’s score, New Kent’s Dayton Meekins ran a sweep along the sideline 39-yards for New Kent to score. After the Falcons next empty possession, the Trojans marched down the field 75 yards, capped off by another Christian touchdown run to up New Kent’s lead to 20-6. At the end of the second quarter, Christian took to the air, launching a pass that connected with Owen Payne, who scampered 60 yards for a Trojan touchdown with 56 seconds remaining until the halftime intermission. New Kent comfortably settled on the 27-6 advantage heading into the break.

It wouldn’t be until the fourth quarter when New Kent would change their total on the scoreboard. Christian’s 30-yard tote accounted for the next Trojan score, increasing their lead to 34-6. The scoring night capped off with Sherman Wynn’s 17-yard touchdown run, pushing the margin to 40-6 as time expired.

After the contest, New Kent Head Coach Scott Girolmo commented about the team’s victory.

“I’m so grateful for the efforts of so many of these guys from the coaches working hard to the scout teams,” he said. “These guys played their tails off for their community.

“Chris Lark, our defensive coordinator, did another marvelous job of preparing our kids to play,” the head coach added. “We have an amazing group of kids led by a wonderful group of seniors, and I’m so happy for them that they got to celebrate homecoming with their families and with a win.”

Christian led the team with 130 rushing yards and 90 passing yards while totaling four touchdowns. Payne was the leaving receiver with 84 yards, and Andrew Fallon led the team in tackles with 10.

New Kent improves to 4-2 on the season.