West Deptford tops Sterling again

Luke Cornelius noticed a few things as he ran to the sideline, having just recovered a fumble for the West Deptford football team.

It was early in the second quarter, and the senior saw the demeanor completely change in his teammates. They were louder - "hyped," as the linebacker, kicker, and running back put it.

But the most obvious change was the look on the Eagles' coach, Clyde Folsom: He was smiling.

Cornelius' fumble recovery turned the tide in the season opener for West Deptford, as the visiting Eagles defeated Sterling, 27-10, Friday night.

Before the fumble, the Silver Knights - trying to beat the Eagles for the first time since 2005 - were rolling. They used a hurry-up offense and a reliance on the run game to try to tire the West Deptford defense. But a pitch to the left side wasn't caught cleanly for Sterling, and Cornelius saw the football bobbled and bounce off a spike and onto the grass.

"I saw their lineman coming, and I was just thinking in my head there's no way he's getting the ball before me," Cornelius said. "I knew I could get to it quicker."

He did, and the big play by Cornelius set his team up with a first down on the Sterling 40-yard line. Seven plays later, West Deptford put it in the end zone.

Thirteen plays after that, the Eagles scored another touchdown, bringing their lead to 14-3 at halftime and completely changing momentum over a six-minute stretch.

Both scoring drives were capped by an Isaiah Easterling touchdown pass to Preston Harcum.

"Any time I have him as a wideout, I have to get the ball to him," said Easterling, a senior. "If there's a pass play called in the huddle, I'm just excited to get the ball to him because I know he can do dangerous things."

Kevin DeCaesar added a 2-yard rushing touchdown to ice the game for the Eagles.

"A lot of people underestimate us this year," Harcum said. "Well, we just had to show that we have the people that are going to work hard and get the job done."

West Deptford 0 14 6 7 - 27

Sterling 3 0 0 7 - 10

S: FG Jurgen Bocoj 32

WD: Preston Harcum 16 pass from Isaiah Easterling (Luke Cornelius kick)

WD: Harcum 49 pass from Easterling (Cornelius kick)

WD: Cameron Wadding 5 run (Kick failed)

S: Davon Tucker 2 run (Bocoj kick)

WD: Kevin DeCaesar 3 run (Cornelius kick)