AHOSKIE – Junior quarterback Ryan Weaver passed for two touchdowns and ran for another while the Hertford County defense pitched a shutout in a 40-0 win here Friday night over Southeast Halifax.

The win was the second straight for the Bears in as many weeks to start the 2012 football season. Hertford County faces a tough task next Friday (Aug. 31) at non-conference nemesis Rocky Mount, a 40-21 winner last night against Bertie.

But before setting their sights on aRocky Mountteam that they’ve beaten on the gridiron only once, the Bears could not let their guard down against an always tough SE Halifax, a team coached by Ahoskie resident Larry Edwards.

After a slow start, the Bears erupted for three, second quarter TD’s and a 26-0 halftime lead, a margin that seemed to take the wind out of the Trojans sails.

On the second snap of the second period, Kenneth Sharpe found the endzone on a two –yard run to cap a seven play, 58 yard drive. Ackerman Grace booted the PAT for a 14-0 lead.

Forcing Southeast to punt on the game’s next series, the Bears went on a nine play, 76 yard drive which ended on Weaver’s one-yard scoring run with 4:28 left before halftime. Anthony Lassiter was the workhorse on that drive, carrying the ball six times for 68 yards.

The Bears defense stood tall again on the Trojans next series, forcing a three-and-out and a short punt, allowing HCHS to take over at the Southeast 30. On the second play, Weaver tossed a 25-yard scoring strike to Dorrien Askew, which accounted for the 26-0 halftime lead.

HCHS added two touchdowns in the third quarter to round out the game’s scoring.

Again capitalizing on a short Southeast punt, the Bears took advantage of a short field at the Trojans 33 yardline. Sharpe covered that distance in one play, taking the handoff straight up the middle and to the endzone. Grace tacked on the PAT and the Bears stretched their lead to 33-0 at the 7:22 mark of the third quarter.

The game’s final touchdown with 52 ticks left on the third quarter clock where Lassiter scored on a five-yard run. Ryan Hatcher split the uprights on the PAT to account for the 40-0 finale.

Kevin Privott tallied the game’s initial touchdown at the 4:24 mark of the opening quarter as he grabbed a 12-yard pass from Weaver.

For the night, the Bears amassed 430 yards of total offense. Sharpe led that effort with 109 rushing yards on 12 carries. Lassiter, with 11 attempts, added 81 yards on the ground. Weaver totaled 117 yards – 82 passing and 35 rushing.

Southeast hit a stonewall in the form of the HCHS defense, who limited their visitors to a mere 51 total yards.