In spite of a strong showing in the first half, the Mathews High School varsity football team lost to King William Friday night by a 49-14 margin. The loss drops the Blue Devils’ record to 1-6.

Mathews was playing its second game in five days, but there was little sign of exhaustion in the first half as the Devils jumped out to a 14-0 lead and were still ahead 14-7 at the half.

“The kids came out and fought real hard,” MHS head coach Ryan Wenner said. “We were taking care of business.”

MHS quarterback Will Harrington completed a 77-yard touchdown pass to Deondre Foster. Harrington also took it in himself from one yard out for the other score. P.J. Johnson was a perfect two-for-two in PAT attempts. Foster ended the night with 137 receiving yards.

In the second half, the 5-2 Cavaliers “came out with a mindset ‘We’re going to be mean and dirty’,” Wenner said, and wore down the Devils with a much rougher style of play. After having lost a couple of kids even before the opening kickoff, Wenner’s ranks were further depleted by this new level of intensity.

The Devils will have another tough test ahead of them this Friday when they play West Point. The Pointers, Division 1A, Conference 42 rivals, currently hold a 6-1 record.

Kickoff for Friday’s game, the 43rd annual Mathews Ruritan Bowl, will be at 7 p.m. at Ken Brown Field. Mathews will host its remaining three games. Following West Point, the Devils will welcome Charles City (Nov. 1) and Middlesex (Nov. 8).

The jayvee Devils, meanwhile, lost to King William last Wednesday, 34-14. Jordan Bozza scored both touchdowns for Mathews, according to jayvee coach Rob Kincade.