East Wake football inches past rival Knightdale

East Wake ran effectively enough to slide past Greater Neuse River 4A Conference rival Knightdale, 21-20, on Friday.

The Warriors (6-4, 4-2 GNRC) remain in the race for second place in the conference, needing a win in their regular season finale against Harnett Central and for Knightdale to beat West Johnston in Benson next week.

The Knights (6-4, 3-3) carried the momentum into the half after quarterback Andre Willis connected on a 34-yard pass to Malik Branch over the middle of the field and Willis added a 2-point conversion.

From there onward, East Wake won the clock game by leaning on the legs of quarterback Tripp Harrington and running backs Mikekale Engles and Cardarius Hartsfield.

Turning point

Running the ball proved useful in a couple ways for the Warriors. It allowed them to keep Knightdale’s offense off the field longer than East Wake’s normal pass-heavy approach likely would have. It also generated the winning score, a 1-yard scamper by Harrington that was finished off with the kick by Jake Clement.

They said it

“The strategy was more to keep my defense on the sideline than anything because of the dynamic play of their quarterback (Willis), and their outside running was really putting pressure on us, physically,” said East Wake coach John Poulnott.

Three who mattered

Tripp Harrington, East Wake: The senior QB had a modest (by his standards) but effective night, going 9 for 13 for 107 yards passing and adding 59 yards and the winning score on 24 carries.

Mikekale Engles, East Wake: The junior had a consistent night with 90 yards rushing, 59 in the second half. His 22-yard run, dragging a host of defenders to the Knightdale 2, set up his own scoring run.

Andre Willis, Knightdale: The QB put up a worthy effort on senior night, going 10 of 18 for 152 yards, producing 61 yards on the ground and having a hand in all three of his teams scores.

By the numbers

0: The number of points scored by Knightdale in the second half. While chewing up the clock on offense, East Wake also held Willis to two completions for a single passing yard in the second half.

2: Extra point attempts the Warriors blocked in the second quarter.

13: The yards covered in a touchdown pass from Willis to Drew Tuazama that set the Knights up 7-6 in the second quarter.

This story was originally published October 30, 2015 at 10:47 PM with the headline "East Wake football inches past rival Knightdale."