[10/16/04]Porters Chapel disposed of another District 4-A doormat Friday night and shifted focus to a district championship matchup next Friday at Tri-County.

The Eagles (8-1, 4-0) scored 45 first-half points, forced five Veritas turnovers and sprinted to a 52-6 homecoming win.

“We had to focus on them because you can never overlook anybody,” said Kenny Simms, who scored three touchdowns one rushing, one receiving and one on a kickoff return. “Anybody can come up from the bottom of the pile and bite you.”

Well, maybe not anybody.

Porters Chapel’s defense held Veritas a private school in Jackson to 23 yards of total offense. Veritas (2-7, 2-2) had only five plays that gained positive yards. The teams moved to a running clock midway through the second quarter with the Eagles leading 45-0.

Gerald Mims started the scoring deluge midway through the first quarter with a 1-yard run. PCA was held on its first possession of the game, but scored points on the next six before halftime.

“We were definitely worried about a lack of focus tonight since we hadn’t played in two weeks and have the Tri-County game coming up,” said PCA coach Randy Wright, whose team recorded a forfeit win over Grawood last week. “I don’t think we played our best game, but the bottom line is we came out and got the job done.”

Following a Veritas punt, Michael Busby connected on an 11-yard touchdown pass to Simms for a 13-0 lead. Hayden Hales intercepted a Veritas pass and returned it for a touchdown on the ensuing possession as the Eagles stormed to a 20-0 lead.

Chris Mixon, who led the team, with 64 yards rushing on four carries, scored on a 20-yard run soon after for a 27-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Spencer Pell forced a safety, Simms returned a kickoff 70 yards for a touchdown, then ran for a 15-yard score and Evan Rogers kicked a 20-yard field goal for the 45-0 lead.

Spencer “Moose” Carney’s 31-yard run in the third quarter gave PCA a 52-0 lead.

“We weren’t totally focused when we came out, but you can do that against these kind of teams,” Busby said. “Thinking about Tri-County, we’re going to have a fight. We’re ready for them.”

Porters Chapel, which has already assured itself a playoff spot, can play for its first district championship and a home playoff game with a win in Flora. The Rebels are also 8-1 and are coming off a big win over Rebul on Friday night.

“They are an extremely well coached team and have a very good tradition up there,” Wright said. “But we are looking forward to playing hard and bringing home a trophy.”