Raiders' D propels win over CP-U

CENTER POINT - Williamsburg's defense took much more than it gave.The Raiders forced three turnovers, scored a safety and didn't permit Center Point-Urbana within a sniff of the end zone in a 19-0 non-district football victory last night at Rogers Field.“Our defense was unbelievable,” said lineman Austin Blythe, a University of Iowa recruit. “We bent a little, but we didn't break.”

Viedo from KCRG-TV9They barely bent.  The Raiders (1-1) didn't allow CPU (1-1) inside the 35-yard line.  Unlike last week, when the Raiders gave up a 19-point lead to Mid-Prairie, they finished the deal. Emphatically.“I like this team,” said Williamsburg Coach Curt Ritchie. “We have a lot of things going for us. We just need to bring more excitement.”The trademark moment was the safety.Leading 14-0, Williamsburg drove 94 yards to the CPU 1, where the march stalled. But the Raiders stuffed the Stormin' Pointers twice for no gain, then stopped Joey Dighton inside the end zone for two points.“We were pretty close the first two plays,” Blythe said. “In the huddle, we were saying, let's get a safety, get the ball back and put them away.”Tim Jones' 44-yard field goal with 3:44 left closed the scoring.CPU finished with 154 yards of total offense.“Their size up front was too much,” said CPU Coach Dan Burke. “We didn't have an answer for them.”Tanner Blomme's 2-yard pass to Nick Timm at the 3:52 mark of the first quarter gave the Raiders a 7-0 lead.The Raiders forced a three-and-out on CPU's first series of the second half, then - after a 5-yard punt allowed the Raiders to set up shop at the CPU 25 - Tyler Greiner scored on a 9-yard run to make it 14-0.Williamsburg's Cord Slaymaker rushed for 136 yards on 24 carries.Both teams enter district play next week.  Williamsburg is at Fairfield; CPU is at North Cedar.