Treakle's trick highlights Broadneck win over N. County

Zach Treakle's pass didn't look too good, but it sure was effective.

Deontray Lee ran for three touchdowns, and Ronnie VanMeter scored twice, but Treakle's 84-yard, halfback-option pass set up Broadneck's 44-19 victory over North County yesterday.

Quarterback Nick Storey tossed the ball to Treakle on the right side, and he threw a wobbly pass to Kevin Brown, who beat two defenders and raced to the end zone for a 21-13 lead with 40.4 seconds left in the first half.

"I got back and threw it, and I looked it the air and said, 'Oh, God, that's not going to turn out great,' " Treakle said. "Kevin came out of nowhere and made a great catch."

Treakle's strike quieted the Knights, who had trimmed a 14-point deficit to one. Broadneck (6-2) scored 23 of the next 29 points - including 16 in the fourth quarter - as its defense overpowered North County.

"That got us," Knights linebacker Pat Carey said. "From there, it seemed like everything went downhill."

Broadneck relentlessly pressured quarterback Pat Downey during the second half, sacking him twice and forcing a safety and a fumble to close North County's last two drives.

Lee gained 115 of the Bruins' 207 rushing yards on 11 carries, and he scored in the first, third and fourth quarters. Lee pushed the lead to 28-19 with a 9-yard touchdown late in the third, and his 48-yard dash down the left sideline put the Knights (5-3) out of reach.

"It felt like they were trying to come back," Lee said. "It's my senior year, and I wasn't trying to lose. I just worked as hard as I could to get us enough of a lead, so they couldn't come back."

Broadneck kept pace with Annapolis (6-2) and put distance between itself and North County in the race for the final spot in the Class 4A East Region playoffs. The Bruins need to beat Northeast and Old Mill and benefit from a North County victory over Annapolis in Week 10 to grab the final spot.

"It all depends on what else happens during the season," Treakle said. "We have to win out. We can't look past what's ahead of us."

Broadneck ran to a 14-0 lead in the first 5:31 on a pair of long plays and two short pushes. Storey threw a 66-yard pass to Nick Crossen, who shook off Steve Perkins and Omar Adams in the secondary to set up Lee's 2-yard score on the next play.

Brooks Wiggans intercepted Downey's deep pass on the next drive and returned it to the Broadneck 43. Lee broke free for a 35-yard run two plays later, and VanMeter hit the end zone on a 5-yard run up the middle.

"Against North County, you can't be passive," Bruins coach Jeff Herrick said. "Our philosophy was to try to attack them on the line, rather than them attack us because they run an attack-style defense."

Downey answered with a 44-yard pass to Deon Page and made it 14-7 with a 1-yard keeper.

Antoine Drummond, who ran for 134 yards and a third-quarter touchdown, set the Knights up for another score early in the second by scrambling for 35 on a first-and-28. After a short run, Drummond blocked for Carey's first touchdown this season - a 7-yarder - to cut Broadneck's lead to 14-13.

North County's Michael Johnson recovered James Mullis' fumbled on the next offensive play. Va'a Niumatalolo and Hussam Ouri sacked Downey to force a punt, but the Knights got the ball back when it slipped through Ryan Terribilie's hands.

North County took over at the 10, but couldn't assume the lead. Niumatalolo stopped Drummond for a loss before Downey took the ball to the 5. Downey looked to pitch on fourth down, but instead ran toward the end zone, and Ouri and Nick Ochoa were there to greet him on the 2-yard line.

"When we recovered that fumble, that was a big one," Knights coach Gary Liddick said. "If we'd have gotten in there, that might have been a change in menu."

Treakle and Brown connected on the next drive, and the Bruins scored the final 23 points.

VanMeter and Lee sandwiched Cory Atwell's sack in the end zone during the fourth quarter to avenge last season's 7-6 loss to North County, which ended the Bruins' playoff hopes.

"We saw them coming out of the second half, and they were all walking," Treakle said. "We definitely wanted it more."

Broadneck (5-2) 14 7 7 16 - 44

North County (5-2) 7 6 6 0 - 19

First Quarter

BN - Lee 2 run (A. Greene kick)

BN - VanMeter 5 run (A. Greene kick)

NC - Downey 1 run (Perkins kick)

Second Quarter

NC - Carey 7 run (kick failed)

BN - Brown 84 pass from Treakle (A. Greene kick)

Third Quarter

NC - Drummond 3 run (run failed)

BN - Lee 9 run (A. Greene kick)

Fourth Quarter

BN - VanMeter 2 run (A. Greene kick)

BN - Atwell safety

BN - Lee 48 run (A. Greene kick)

PASSING: BN - Treakle 1-1-1-0=84 yards, Storey 2-4=73 yards, Mullis 1-3=6 yards; NC - Downey 6-11-0-1=52 yards. RECEIVING: BN - Brown 1-84-1, Crossen 1-66, VanMeter 1-6; NC - Blair 1-44, Perkins 2-12, Brooks 1-(-)3, Drummond 1-(-)1. RUSHING: BN - Lee 11-115-3, Treakle 8-39, VanMeter 11-35-2, Storey 4-28, Mullis 7-18; NC - Drummond 22-134-1, Downey 10-22, Rover 2-16, Carey 4-10-1.