Greenbrier Middle heads toward sweep

The Greenbrier Middle School football team is picking up steam as the six-game season enters its stretch run.

The Wolfpack defeated Columbia Middle 36-0 on Tuesday at the Brierpatch. The win gave Greenbrier a 4-0 record with two games remaining in the season and positions the Pack to become the first county middle school squad to post a perfect record since 1997, when Evans Middle School went 6-0.

''We won't overlook Riverside next week. We still have to block and tackle, and cut out the penalties and mistakes," said Greenbrier coach Jody Hilley, who coached at Evans Middle in '97.

Greenbrier took a 6-0 lead against Columbia (0-3-1) when Shad Harris scored a 44-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage. In the second half Erik Smith scored twice, and Tanner Helfrich added two fourth-quarter touchdowns.

''The entire defense played well. Defense has kept us in the games, but we're still waiting to put two halves together," Hilley said.

The only team to score against Greenbrier this season has been Lakeside Middle. The Panthers lost to the Pack 8-6 in the season opener, but Lakeside has rebounded with three straight wins, including a 14-0 victory Tuesday at Harlem Middle School.

Lakeside tailbacks Shawn Maw and Baron Josey each scored, and both contributed defensively at linebacker. Arthur Marshall also had a good game at linebacker, while Chris Drayton intercepted a Harlem pass attempt.

Harlem (2-2) and Lakeside (3-1) both entered the game with 2-1 records, so the win gave the Panthers the second-best record in the county.

Evans Middle School recorded a 28-6 win Tuesday over Riverside Middle. After three straight road games to start the season, the Knights were home last week and will finish 2001 with two more home games.

''Playing on your home field does matter, and we're home the rest of the way," Evans Middle coach Carter Morris said.

The Knights took the lead when Matt Stark recovered a fumble and returned it for an 80-yard touchdown. From there, Evans employed a ball-control rushing offense, with Shon Simmons and Jason Ayers leading the attack.

The defeat dropped Riverside to 0-3-1, while Evans evened its record at 2-2.

''You want to go 6-0, but now we're going for 4-2," Morris said.

This week's middle school football schedule features Columbia at Lakeside, Harlem at Evans, and Greenbrier vs. Riverside at the Brierpatch. The games kick off Tuesday at 5 p.m.