Feather River may have struck first on Saturday night in Quincy, but it was all Laney from that point forward, as the Eagles rolled up over 700 yards of total offense during an explosive 55-24 victory to stay unbeaten.
Feather River drove 50 yards before settling for a field goal midway through the first quarter for a 3-0 advantage, but it was short-lived, as Laney quarterback Jordon Brookshire (Cardinal Newman) connected with Balewa Byrd (Swett) for a 74-yard touchdown and a 6-3 lead after one quarter.
The Eagles started to pull away in the second quarter, thanks to a pair of John McDonald (Lincoln-Stockton) touchdown runs, including a 58-yarder with under two minutes remaining in the first half. It appeared as if Laney would go into halftime up 20-3, but Feather River’s Antoine Patton broke loose for a 73-yard score on the next offensive play. The Eagles, however, refused to let that end the first-half scoring, as McDonald reached paydirt one more time, this time from 29 yards out, capping a five-play, 71-yard drive which took just 46 seconds.
Feather River closed the gap one more time on a short touchdown run by Patton to open the third quarter, but Brookshire connected with Quintus Hall and Angelo Garrett (McClymonds) to extend the lead, and fourth-quarter touchdown runs from Kerrion Hadnot and Josh Blocker (Berkeley) put the game away for good.
Brookshire finished the night 14-of-21 passing for 318 yards and three scores, while Byrd led the way with five catches for 138 yards and a touchdown. McDonald led the rushing attack with 127 yards, while Hadnot added 70 yards on just four carries, and Ledre McCullough (Amador Valley) had eight carries for 58 yards. The Laney defense notched 12 total stops behind the line of scrimmage, including three tackles for a loss from linebacker Cam Nathan (Antioch).
Patton was the lone standout for Feather River, carrying the ball 13 times for 130 yards and three touchdowns.
