River Hill football shuts out Atholton, 9-0, to keep playoff hopes alive

River Hill junior Cooper McGeehan wasn't having his best day as the team's kicker in windy conditions Saturday afternoon at Atholton.His 31-yard field goal attempt late in the first half of a scoreless game went wide to the left, and his second try early in the third quarter from 34 yards out was blocked.&quot;I was a little upset. I let it slip by, but there's always another one,&quot; McGeehan said. &quot;It was 0-0, so that could've made or broke the game, but I hung tough.&quot;In the end, McGeehan's biggest play came at wide receiver early in the fourth quarter. With the Hawks up 2-0 after a safety, he caught a 33-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Luke Champion in what would be the only touchdown in a 9-0 victory over their biggest rival.&quot;It wasn't even supposed to go to my side. I'm just out there to distract the corner,&quot; said McGeehan, who had 2 catches for 35 yards. &quot;But I see Luke running my way and I wanted him to throw it to me. I caught it and ran down the sideline.&quot;The win gives the Hawks (4-4) life in the 3A East regional playoff race, while Atholton (5-3) – which was celebrating its homecoming and 50th anniversary – dropped its first game after winning three straight.&quot;We talked about that. We just try to focus getting better each week and this was by far our best performance,&quot; said River Hill coach Brian Van Deusen. &quot;We played tough for four quarters and we've had spurts throughout the year where we look great, but can't put it together for a full game. Today we put it together for a full four quarters.&quot;The game turned after McGeehan's blocked field goal. The Raiders took over at their own 20, but on the third play a bad snap sent the ball sailing over the head of senior quarterback Dominic Totaro (7-for-11 passing, 63 yards) and through the back of the end zone for a safety.Three possessions later, River Hill started its scoring drive at its own 17 but decided to punt into the wind at the 39. However, McGeehan was hit after the punt and Atholton was called for a 15-yard personal foul penalty, which allowed the Hawks to maintain possession and finish off the 12-play drive with McGeehan's score.&quot;We thought we had a tip, but there's no instant replay in high school. Unfortunately you have to roll with what's called on the field and respect that,&quot; said Raiders coach Justin Carey. &quot;That's tough, but it was detrimental to the drive and kept them going. When you have your defense on the field for those 10-plus play drives, bad things usually happen.&quot;River Hill essentially put the game on ice when Donovan Nicastro recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff with 5:04 left at the Raiders 31. Atholton was forced to use all of its timeouts, and the Hawks' defense pinned their ears back and sacked Totaro twice on the next drive.River Hill had four of its six sacks in the fourth quarter and held the Raiders to just 75 total yards of offense and four first downs. The Hawks, meanwhile, had 12 first downs and 237 total yards, including 152 rushing yards on 48 carries from five different ball carriers. Nicastro led the way with 72 yards on 20 attempts, while Champion (11-for-16 passing, 85 yards, TD, INT) had 13 carries for 39 yards.&quot;I give a lot of credit to our offensive line. They're small but they played a tough game,&quot; Van Desuen said. &quot;We pounded the ball offensively – we've never been able to run the ball that much. This was our best game running the ball and the conditions kind of forced us into that.&quot;Defensively, it was the first shutout of the season for River Hill, which had lost two straight games, and the first time being shutout for Atholton. Raiders running backs Eric Love and Jelani Dula combined for 29 yards on 17 rushes and 38 yards on three receptions.&quot;It was defensive slugfest,&quot; said Carey. &quot;I thought our defense played well but it came down to execution on offense. Our defense was on the field too long, and if you catch a well-coached team like that in the fourth quarter they're going to make something happen.&quot;Long Reach (7-1), Glenelg (6-2) and Wilde Lake (5-3) hold the top three spots in the 3A East region with two weeks left, but River Hill is now just one game behind Atholton for the fourth and final position.The Raiders face Oakland Mills and undefeated Howard to close the season, while the Hawks have Hammond and Mt. Hebron, which have a combined 2-14 record.&quot;Oakland Mills is a must win,&quot; Carey said. &quot;They beat River Hill last week and it's probably going to come down to points and head-to-head. River Hill has an easier road ahead, but a win against Oakland Mills – we'll have to see how the points stack up because we could both potentially finish 6-4. But none of that matters unless we beat Oakland Mills on Friday for our senior night.&quot;River Hill (4-4) – 0 0 2 7 – 9Atholton (5-3) – 0 0 0 0 – 0 Scoring plays:Third quarterRH: Defensive safety [2-0]Fourth quarterRH: Luke Champion 33-yard pass to Cooper McGeehan, McGeehan kick [9-0]To see other Howard County football results and scores from Week 8, click here.

River Hill football shuts out Atholton, 9-0, to keep playoff hopes alive

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