IMG Academy cruised in their win over Cornerstone Canyon (Tex.) on Saturday, Aug. 30 by every metric.
The Ascendersscored on every possession of the first half of their 59-10 win. They hung 52 points in the first half, all while bottling up up the Warrior offense.
IMG Academy needed just two plays to find pay dirt after Georgia QB commit Jayden Wade took a keeper 78 yards for a touchdown. Sophomore running back Cayden Gould took in a 3-yard carry for a touchdown on the next drive, then extended the Ascender lead to 21-0 with a 37-yard touchdown carry on the drive after that.
"We have some young guys up front on both sides of the ball, and I think it's important for us to come out and start fast," said head coach Greg Studrawa. "When we do that,
good things happen early and we play with a lot of confidence. And I think that's what we've done two weeks in a row."
Gould was spectacular in the blowout. A big catch from Eric McFarland III set up his third rushing touchdown later in the second quarter, and he finished the night with around 90 rushing yards on nine carries.
As Gould carved up Cornerstone Christian on the ground, Wade diced them up in the air. The junior signal caller tallied three passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown, and finished 8-of-11 in the air.
Osani Gayles, Eric Whitfield, and McFarland III all caught one touchdown pass each.
"Boy, I really like the way Wade is handling things," Studrawa said. "So much better than last year. He's understanding, he's making plays, he's making throws. He's getting us in and out of the right plays, in and out of the right protections, so his growth is going to make us click more and more on offense."
IMG Academy was in the backfield constantly on the other side of the ball. Four different players registered a tackle for loss in the first half, and Cornerstone Christian was forced to work the outside to avoid a stout defense front. Phoenix Evans tallied two pass breakups in the secondary during the first half while providing invaluable run support.
"Look at what we had last year (on defense)," Studrawa said. "The standard they set was they controlled the line of scrimmage every game. And that's the challenge to these guys. I don't really care about your age. You're here for are reason, you're here to carry on that standard of play - and that's dominant defensive line performance. I think they did that at times tonight and at times we let down a little bit..."
With the convincing win, the Ascenders advance to 2-0 having outscored opponents 118-13. They travel to California next week to take on St. Louis from Hawaii (0-2).
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: IMG Academy cruises in 59-10 win over Cornerstone Christian (Tex.)
