Arlington, VA - Behind another balanced rushing effort and a defense that forced three fumbles, Yorktown knocked off host Mount Vernon 34-7 Friday night.

The Patriots improved to 5-2, 3-1 in the National District, while the Majors fell to 3-4 (3-2 in the district).

But Yorktown gained inspiration from a special source. Alex Hanson, the 15-year-old son of Patriots coach Bruce Hanson, had open-heart surgery on Oct. 17 at Children's Hospital in Washington.

``We dedicated this game to Alex," said Yorktown senior running back Scott Brooks, who rushed for a team-high 86 yards and scored three touchdowns. ``He's been going through a lot of stuff, but every time we see him he's got a smile on his face, and that just makes us want to work harder every day at practice. He's fighting, and we just want to fight with him."

Last week, Bruce Hanson missed just his second practice in 30 years of coaching to be with Alex for his surgery. The only other practice he missed was for Alex's birth.

``The kids have been great," said Bruce Hanson, who spent the better part of the last few weeks at the hospital. ``It was nice to get out here."

Hanson said his son is recovering well and on his way back to health.

The Patriots led 7-0 at halftime and took advantage when Brooks recovered a Mount Vernon fumble on the second play of the third quarter. Seven plays later, senior running back Delvin Jones scored from 2 yards out to give Yorktown a 14-0 lead.

On the third play of Mount Vernon's ensuing possession, the Majors again fumbled, and Yorktown senior linebacker Brian Patino recovered at the Mount Vernon 29. A 15-yard face-masking penalty compounded the error, and Yorktown gained possession at the 14.

Brooks (13 carries, 86 yards) scored on an 8-yard run two plays later and the Patriots had a comfortable 21-0 lead with six minutes, 45 seconds left in the third quarter.

Mount Vernon senior running back Thomas Clayton's 7-yard run got the Majors on the scoreboard with 8:48 left in the fourth quarter.

Yorktown had an answer, however, responding with an eight-play, 54-yard drive that ended with Brooks's third touchdown of the evening, this time from 4 yards out.

While Clayton entered the game as the Northern Region's fifth-leading rusher, it was the Patriots' rushing attack that was the most impressive. Brooks, Jones (13 carries, 81 yards) and sophomore Duane Tigney (10 carries, 74 yards) paced an offense that rushed for 268 yards.

Yorktown was in control for much of the first half. On the Patriots' second drive, senior fullback Scott Brooks capped a nine-play, 56-yard drive on a 2-yard run, giving Yorktown a 7-0 lead. Brooks, Jones and Tigney led the balanced attack. Each had at least six carries, and they combined for 127 yards before halftime.

Though Clayton rushed for 107 yards on 10 first-half carries, the Majors could not translate the production into points. Mount Vernon advanced the ball deep into Patriots territory midway through the second quarter. But a clipping penalty on second-and-7 from the Yorktown 12 was followed a play later by Yorktown linebacker Jerny-Ron Reyes' sack of Majors sophomore quarterback Chris Jensen, ending the scoring threat.

Clayton finished with 143 yards on 19 carries. It was the first time this season Mount Vernon didn't win when Clayton rushed for at least 140 yards.

With games left against district foes Stuart and Washington-Lee, which entered Week 7 a combined 1-11, the Patriots have gained the inside track on winning at least a share of the district title.

``It's going to be interesting," Hanson said.

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Hawks hold off Spartans

Less than two minutes into Friday's Patriot District contest between Hayfield and visiting West Springfield, it became apparent the game was to be a showdown between the teams' two tailbacks.

West Springfield running back Jamie Langley and Hayfield's Tyrone Simpson combined for 378 rushing yards on the night, but it was Simpson and the Hawks who walked away with a 24-14 victory.

With the win, Hayfield (5-2, 3-2) remained in the thick of the Northern Region Division 6 playoff race, while the Spartans (4-3, 3-2) postseason hopes suffered a major blow.

``It was [basically] a playoff game," Hayfield coach Billy Pugh said of the importance of the victory. ``And our kids showed up and played well."

None better than Simpson, who grounded out 173 yards on 29 carries. Langley finished with 17 rushes for 205 yards. But most of his yards came on two big first-quarter touchdown runs, and the Hawks defense was limited Langley to just 43 yards during the final three quarters.

Both running backs found the end zone withing the first 1 minute, 26 seconds of the game. First, Simpson ran left on the Hawks' second offensive play, eluding one tackler before running untouched down the left sideline for a 48-yard score and a 7-0 lead.

Langley countered just two plays later, tying the game at 7 by bursting through a hole in the middle of the line and outrunning the Hayfield secondary for a 92-yard touchdown. On West Springfield's next possession, Langley gave his team a 14-7 lead with a 63-yard touchdown run midway through the quarter. But the Hawks answered, putting together a 12-play drive that ended when Simpson carried a pile of tacklers into the end zone for a 5-yard touchdown that tied the game at 14.

``I started it off, then he broke one, so I had to come back one more time," Simpson said. ``We just wanted to pound it up the middle, because that's where we knew they were weak.''

The Hawks regained the lead late in the first half. Running back Greg Lynah returned a punt 20 yards to the 50, and the Hawks' offense did the rest, marching down field in eight plays.

Hayfield quarterback Kyle Morgan (8-for-13, 85 yards) completed three passes on the drive, including two first-down completions to wide receiver Robert Malone (six catches, 66 yards), before taking the ball in himself from 1 yard out with 19 seconds left. Brendon Martin added a 20-yard field goal midway through the third quarter for the final margin of victory.

Following the victory, Pugh credited his defense for making proper adjustments after Langley's two long runs. He also praised his offensive line, particularly guards Woon Hee Lee and Nathan Anderson.

``Those two guards right there are pretty good," Pugh said. ``That's why we thought we could run at them."