AHOSKIE – Put together 400 yards of total offense and wins come.

Hertford County High School did just that last night (Friday) when they combined 385 rushing yards with 74 passing yards to accumulate 459 yards of total offense as they rolled by non-league foe Kinston 38-15.

While the offense was rolling up big yardage, it was the special teams that set up the first three scores for the Bears as they partially or fully blocked three Viking punts.

After HCHS forced a Kinston punt, Andre Lyles got a piece of the football, giving the Bears field position at the Viking 38-yardline.

It took four plays, including a 12-yard jaunt by Rashawn Mercer to move the ball to the 15 and from there senior quarterback Danny Dembry lofted a 15-yard aerial strike to LaMarcus Jenkins at the 5:53 mark of the first quarter. The conversion failed, but the Bears had begun a 38-point roll.

Moments later, the Bears got another block from Lyles to give them the ball on their own 41-yardline.

It took just one play to get HCHS back to the endzone as Dembry went 59 yards for the score on the next play from scrimmage. Richard Burns added the PAT to give the Bears a 13-0 lead.

After forcing a four-and-out, Marcel Henneghan got the third straight punt block for the Bears, this time giving HCHS field position at the Viking 34-yardline.

Mercer picked up eight yards, followed by successive carries by Dembry that resulted in a first-and-goal from the five. Two plays later Mercer punched in the score and, even with a failed extra point, the Bears had taken a commanding 19-0 lead with 9:32 to play in the first half..

Little did third year skipper Greg Watford know his squad would find the endzone two more times in the first half.

After forcing a punt on Kinston’s next possession, the first such effort that succeeded, HCHS set up shop on their own 47-yardline. On the next play from scrimmage, Travis Greene broke a handful of tackles and rumbled 53 yards to paydirt, putting the Bears ahead 25-0.

The Bears got the ball back at their own 42-yardline with just over four minutes to play in the first half and this time Hertford County turned to LaQuan Tann. The junior halfback lost two yards on his first carry of the drive, but then rolled off runs of eight and 45 yards before punching it in from seven yards out with 3:34 to play in the first half. Michael Burton added the PAT to give HCHS a commanding 32-0 lead at the intermission.

The second half started with a bang on Hertford County first possession. Taking over at the Kinston 41-yardline, Dembry connected with Greene on a 59-yard touchdown strike. A bad snap on the conversion sent Burton scrambling, but the senior had the presence of mind to complete a pass to Tydreke Powell and the fullback went to the one before being stopped, leaving HCHS up 38-0 with 10:09 to play in the third period.

Kinston finally got on the board in the final minutes of the third quarter when quarterback Antonio Whitfield scored on a one-yard plunge to cap a eight-play, 67-yard drive. Miguel Starkley added the conversion to make it 38-8.

The Vikings scored again with 5:05 to play when Michael Thompson went 11 yards to paydirt. The extra point was added to make it 38-15.

Fresh off their 1-0 start, the Bears will be back at home next week when they play host to R.L. Fike High School from Wilson. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

Score By Quarters

HCHS – 13-19-6-0

Kinston – 0-0-8-7

Scoring Summary

Hertford County – LaMarcus Jenkins, 15-yard pass from Danny Dembry; pass failed; 5:53 1st

Hertford County – Dembry, 59-yard run; Richard Burns kick; 1:22 1st

Hertford County – Rashawn Mercer, 2-yard run; kick failed; 9:32 2nd

Hertford County – Travis Greene, 53-yard run; kick failed; 7:02 2nd

Hertford County – LaQuan Tann, 7-yard run; Michael Burton kick; 3:34 2nd

Hertford County – Greene, 59-yard pass from Dembry; 10:09 3rd

Kinston – Antonio Whitfield, 1-yard run; Miguel Starkley run; 1:20 3rd

Kinston – Michael Thompson, 11-yard run; Ed Sparrow kick; 5:05 4th

Rushing

Hertford County – Rashawn Mercer 12 – 133; Danny Dembry 8 – 96; Travis Greene 4 – 80; LaQuan Tann 8 – 71; Michael Stephenson 2-5

Kinston – Michael Thompson 17 – 102; Antonio Whitfield 18 -35; Miguel Starkley 5 – 16; Demarcus Quinnerly 5 – 11; Jordan Ervin 1 – 5

Receiving

Hertford County – Travis Greene 1 – 59; LaMarcus Jenkins 1 – 15

Kinston – Terry Locust 2-51;

Passing

Hertford County – Danny Dembry 2-5-0, 74

Kinston – Antonio Whitfield 3-11-1, 66