WILMINGTON — Cole Fenice ran for 131 yards and scored three touchdowns, and Miles Kempski passed for 189 yards and four scores as Archmere overwhelmed Tower Hill, 44-6, in Class 2A District 2 football on Oct. 20. It was the Auks’ third straight win.
Archmere had five possessions in the first half and scored on four to put the game out of reach. The Auks took over on their own 48 two and a half minutes into the contest, and three rushes by three different players put them on the Hillers’ 27. Fenice carried on first down to the 20, and P.J. Blessington ran eight yards for a first down at the 12. Kempski rolled to his right and found Fenice with a short pass. Fenice did the rest, carrying the ball down the right sideline for a touchdown.
A Hillers drive stalled near midfield, and Archmere started their next possession at their own 25. With 3:20 to go in the first. The Auks drained eight minutes off the clock in a 16-play drive that ended in dramatic fashion. Facing a fourth down and 10 from the Tower 18, Kempski faked going left, rolled to his right and hit Brendan Burke up the middle. Burke dragged a would-be tackler into the end zone. A two-point conversion made it 14-0.
The Hillers again moved the ball into Auks territory before being forced to punt, giving Archmere the ball at the 15. This time, the visitors didn’t need nearly as many plays or time to score. Fenice ran for 15 yards on first down. On a third and 5, Kempski scrambled for 33 yards to the Hillers’ 32, and on the next play, he threw to Drew Duncan, who ran it in for another touchdown.
The Auks got the ball one final time in the half with 30 seconds and one timeout remaining. Blessington caught a 3-yard pass, and the Auks used their final timeout. After an incomplete pass, Kempski found Duncan open over the middle at the Tower Hill 14 with 3 seconds to go. Archmere downed the ball to stop the clock, and after a penalty on the Hillers moved the ball to the 9, Fenice came in and drilled a 25-yard field goal as time expired.
After lightning delayed the start of the second half by 30 minutes, the Auks continued to bring the offense as rain fell. Kempski threw a 79-yard touchdown pass to Gavin Lee, and Fenice added two more short rushing scores.
Duncan finished with three catches for 73 yards and the touchdown. Defensively, Blessington led the team with nine tackles, while Burke and Jack Bradley each had five. Archmere (4-3) takes on Howard on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. at Abessinio Stadium.
Tower (4-3) visits Odessa on Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m.
All photos by Mike Lang.
