Sports Writer

MONROEVILLE – The Charles Henderson High School Trojans earned their first regional win Friday night, as they soundly defeated the Monroe County Tigers 47-0.

The Trojans looked impressive on offense and defense, scoring five offensive touchdowns and two touchdowns on defense.

"This was really a well-rounded team effort by our guys," said CHHS head coach Hugh Fountain. "I was especially proud to see our defense get a shutout tonight."

The Trojans didn’t waste much time on their first drive of the night. Operating out of the shotgun-formation, Trojan quarterback Kevin Stephens hit wide receiver Will Jones down the sideline for a 35-yard touchdown. The four-play drive covered 50 yards and gave the Trojans an early lead. The two-point conversion failed and the score was, CHHS 6 MCHS 0.

On the ensuing kickoff the MCHS kick returner dropped the ball and accidentally kicked it into a host of Trojan defenders. The Trojans recovered the fumble at the Tigers’ 27-yard line and began their second drive of the game. This time it took the Trojans only three plays to reach the end zone, with running back Felix Soloman carrying most of the load. Soloman carried the ball 23 yards to the four yard line. With 9:13 remaining in the first quarter, running back Terrill Smith scored from three yards out. The two-point conversion attempt failed and the lead was extended to 12-0 in favor of the Trojans.

The Tigers were ineffective on their first drive and struggled most of the night against an aggressive Trojan defense. After five plays the Tigers turned the ball over on downs.

The Trojans took over at their own 47- yard line, and after a long drive plagued by penalties, the powerful Trojan offense struck again. With 2:31 remaining in the first quarter, Smith scored on a 1-yard run to put the Trojans on top 19-0.

MCHS stalled on their next drive and facing a fourth and 28 situation, punted the ball away. Behind a strong passing game the Trojans moved the ball from their own 41-yard line to the Tigers 10-yard line. Running back Jarvis Woods took the ball to the 4- yard line, and Smith capped the 10-play drive going up the middle for the touchdown. The Trojans held a commanding 26-0 lead with 7:15 left in the second quarter.

Smith was the leading scorer for the Trojans, scoring four touchdowns, while accumulating 74 yards on the ground. Also on offense, Kevin Stephens came through for the Trojans, passing for 178 yards and one touchdown.

One standout on defense was sophomore cornerback Roderick Burden. Burden intercepted two of MCHS quarterback T.J. Mann’s passes and returned both for touchdowns. One interception covered 35 yards and gave the Trojans a 33-0 lead with 5:39 remaining in the first half. At halftime the score remained 33-0.

The second half didn’t get much easier for the Tigers. Burden picked off his second pass of the night and carried it in for a touchdown, putting the Trojans ahead 40-0 with 4:55 left in the third quarter.

The Trojans continued to pound the Tigers in the fourth quarter. Smith broke loose on a 53-yard run up the sideline for the final score of the game. The touchdown came with 2:31 remaining in the third quarter and from there the second string took over.

The defensive unit also stepped up late in the game as Wesley Pennington, Will Broadway, Jason Barron, and Robert Maldon all recorded sacks on the MCHS quarterback

Johnathan West also made a big play by tackling the punter on a mishandled punt.

Fountain said that the regional win was extremely important to his team.

"It’s big. It’s a nice way to bounce back from last weeks loss. All regional games are important , and this win is big because it’s a step towards our goal of becoming regional champs," he said.

Next week the Trojans play South-Side Selma, at home, in another regional game.

"If I was concerned about anything, it would be the quality of their athletes. They always have good athletes," said Fountain.

The Trojans improved to 3-1 on the season and 1-1 in regional play.