Vikings Stymie Islanders, 14-0

For the moment, bragging rights in the southern part of Newport County belong to the Vikings.

Buoyed by a productive ground game, two masterful scoring drives and a bend-but-don’t-break defense, the Rogers High football team blanked host , 14-0, Friday night in a critical Division III game played under bizarre weather conditions at the Gaudet School Field.

Senior quarterback Cody Platt scored all 14 points in the contest and played a big role in a defensive unit which three times stopped the Islanders inside the 25-yard line as the Vikings improved to 5-1 overall and 4-0 against divisional rivals. Middletown falls to 4-2 overall and 2-2 in league play.

Platt produced touchdown rushes of 15 and 1 yards ending Rogers’ first and final series, respectively, of the long night which featured pre-game fog, intermittent rainfall, heavy downpours, blustery winds and finally lightning bolts that forced a delay of more than 40 minutes midway through the fourth quarter. Clinging to a 7-0 lead since the opening chapter, the Vikes returned rejuvenated from the late-game break and manufactured a methodical 15-play, 78-yard scoring march which sealed the outcome.

“We’re extremely happy with this win and especially how our defense played tonight,” said Rogers Coach Frank Newsome. “The last two weeks, our defense had holes blown through it, so we spent a lot of time talking about how the defense had to step up, be more aggressive and gang-tackle. We knew if we didn’t get a good defensive effort, it was going to be a long night.”

While Rogers did not force a turnover, its defense unofficially limited Middletown to 157 yards of total offense. In addition to Platt, the Vikes’ defensive heroes included Divon Bailey, Khalil Moon, Mike O’Connell, Marc Washington, Angel Otero, Kyle Henderson, Jake Duncan, Marquis Butler, Reeyon Watts, Jamon Brant, Trevor Morgera and others.

Offensively, Platt teamed with running backs Watts and Washington to produce 212 rushing yards. Platt also completed three passes for 30 yards.

The Islanders received solid performances from quarterback Justin Sellar and running backs Kevin Nash, Connor Russ and Randolph Butler, but failed to execute well at crucial junctures, much to the dismay of Coach Arthur Bell.

“We’re a young team, but we can’t use that as an excuse anymore,” Bell said. “Our kids played hard and played well, but we just didn’t make enough plays.”

Friday’s victory was especially satisfying for the Vikings, who were throttled by the Islanders, 30-11, in the semifinal-round of last year’s Division III playoffs. Middletown went on to claim the Division III state championship.

Rogers took the game’s opening kickoff and proceeded 60 yards in 13 plays to paydirt, with Platt hooking up with Butler and Washington on pass plays and leaning on Watts and Washington to soften Middletown’s defense on the ground. Platt ran 15 yards to the Islander 14-yard stripe on a fourth-and-14 play and one play later barreled through several defenders and into the endzone for the game’s first score.

Platt’s first conversion kick gave the guests a 7-0 lead with 6:48 remaining in the opening chapter.

Middletown got a big break early in the second quarter when Dylan Atibagos intercepted a Platt aerial and ran it back 43 yards to the Vikings’ 22-yard line. The threat, however, petered out when two running plays gained just two yards and Sellar threw a pair of pass incompletions.

In the closing stages of the first half, the Islanders drove to the Vikings’ 20-yard line, but Sellar was sacked on back-to-back plays and Rogers maintained its 7-0 edge at halftime.

Early in the fourth period, the Islanders advanced to the Rogers’ 21-yard stripe, but went no further as a running play lost one yard and Sellar threw incomplete on fourth down. After the lightning delay, the Vikings powered their way back to the endzone, with Platt’s one-yard plunge capping the drive and his second extra point concluding the scoring with 2:32 remaining.

A successful Sellar pass to Camden Murphy and two Sellar runs for first downs enabled Middletown to reach the Vikes’ 45-yard stripe in the closing seconds, but the drive petered out when Sellar was again sacked twice and threw incomplete on his final toss of the game.

Both clubs return to action next weekend in divisional outings. Rogers will host Classical High of Providence on Friday at 7 p.m., while Middletown will visit Moses Brown School of Providence on Saturday at 11 a.m.

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