the Cafe
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Cape Henlopen High School's football team downplayed the revenge factor before its Henlopen Conference game against Sussex Central on Friday, Oct. 2, 1998. But the ferocity with which the Vikings dismantled their Georgetown rivals made it hard to believe payback was not a driving force.
Cape scored on its first five possessions and roared to a relatively easy 41-0 victory over the Golden Knights in Lewes. The win was Cape's third straight and improved its record to 1-0 in the conference and 3-1 overall.
Last year, Central handed Cape its only conference loss of the season, driving 80 yards for a touchdown in the game's final 3:43 to grab a thrilling 15-9 victory in Georgetown.
"I think it's a big rival game between Cape and Sussex," Cape coach Brian Donahue said. "I don't know if they were thinking about it (last year) or not, but they must have been thinking about it a little bit."
In its last three home games against Central, Cape has outscored the Golden Knights 91-0. The Vikings won 24-0 in 1996 and 26-0 in 1994. Central's last victory on Cape's field was in 1992.
"We didn't want to come into this game as being rivals or whatever," Cape running back Elijah Worthy said. "It's just another conference game. It's just somebody that beat us last year."
Worthy was the Vikings' catalyst against the Knights, rushing for 116 yards and three touchdowns. The senior scored on runs of 22, 16 and 22 yards in the first half before sitting out most of the final two quarters. In Cape's first four games, Worthy has rushed for 529 yards and 10 touchdowns.
"The line was just opening up holes. The fullbacks were blocking good. That's how it goes," he said. "It's like we're all starting to gel right now, just coming on as a team. Every week we get hard practices and coach is getting us ready for all the games."
The Vikings racked up 315 yards total offense and held Central to 160.
"We have nice backs that are capable of scoring. The offensive line has been coming together and they're doing a good job blocking for us," Donahue said. "Worthy's been doing a great job carrying the ball for us and picking up the tempo. The other backs, (Malik) Lopez and Timmy Cannon the fullback, have been doing a great job blocking."
Cape wasted no time turning the game into a rout, setting up at its own 30 yard line after the opening kickoff and driving 70 yards in just five plays. Runs of 11 and 22 yards by Cannon helped set up Worthy's 22-yard scoring sprint with 10:08 left in the first quarter. Matt Hall's extra point attempt was wide left, leaving the Vikings with a 6-0 lead.
On its ensuing possession, Central (0-1, 2-2) drove 51 yards in 12 plays to the Cape 17 but came away empty when Adam Zee missed a 35-yard field goal attempt. The Vikings took over on their own 20 and launched a 12-play, 80-yard drive capped by Worthy's 16-yard touchdown run two minutes into the second quarter. Worthy also added the two-point conversion to put Cape ahead 14-0.
Central was forced to punt on its next possession and Cape again moved effortlessly down the field. When Worthy raced 22 yards up the middle for his third score of the game, it capped a six-play, 54-yard drive that gave Vikings a 21-0 lead.
Any hopes of a Central comeback were dashed on the first play of its next series when Lopez intercepted a Josh Hershelman pass near midfield and returned it 25 yards to the Central 14. Cannon scored from nine yards out two plays later to give the Vikings a 28-0 halftime advantage.
Cannon rushed for 76 yards on 12 carries before sitting out the second half.
In the third quarter, Cape got a 50-yard run from Mark Moore to set up Lopez's 1-yard touchdown run. Reserve Thaddeus Shockley scored from 20 yards out late in the fourth quarter to cap the scoring.
Since a 7-6 season-opening loss at St. Mark's, Cape has won its next three games but a combined score of 123-8.
"It was a conference game so we wanted to win it," Donahue said of Sussex Central contest. "Each game in the conference you control your own destiny and that's the way you look at it. Each conference game is an important game for you and we're just taking it one at a time."
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