River Hill (Howard County) vs. Thomas Johnson (Frederick County)

Maryland Class 3A Championship

December 3, 2011

M&T Bank Stadium

Winner: River Hill

Score: 41-13

Game Notes:

  • River Hill wins their third state title in the last five years (2007, 2008, 2011).
  • Thomas Johnson commited nine turnovers. The Patriots lost six fumbles, and quarterback Heath Dahlgren threw three interceptions.
  • Raamah Vaughn scored three rushing touchdowns and Aaron Wells added two for River Hill, with the two players combining for 274 total yards on the ground (Wells 173, Vaughn 101).
  • River Hill running back Evan Griffin accumulated 141 total yards, and scored one rushing touchdown (28 pass, 32 rush, 33 rec, 48 return).
  • Brandan Berney was the lone bright spot for Thomas Johnson, scoring two touchdowns and rushing for 84 yards on 19 carries.
Individual Statistics
Passing
Team Player Comp-Att Yards TD INT
T. Johnson Heath Dahlgren 8-21 142 3
River Hill Raamah Vaughn 1-3 33 1
River Hill Evan Griffin 1-1 28
T. Johnson Paris Price 0-1

Rushing

Team Player Carries Yards TD 2 Pt. Avg
River Hill Gray McLaughlin 1 5 5.0
River Hill Raamah Vaughn 17 101 3 7.1
River Hill Evan Griffin 5 32 1 6.4
River Hill Aaron Wells 24 173 2 7.2
T. Johnson Richie Anderson 10 45 4.5
T. Johnson Brandan Berney 19 84 2 5.4
T. Johnson Doug Sponyoe 4 55 13.8
River Hill P.J. Kinkead 1 -1 -1.0
River Hill Actavieus Bennett 2 22 11.0
River Hill Terrance Howell 1 1 1.0

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Receiving

Team Player Catches Yards TD 2 Pt. Avg
T. Johnson Nate Hairston 3 89 29.7
River Hill Evan Griffin 1 33 33.0
River Hill Raamah Vaughn 1 32 32.0
River Hill P.J. Kinkead 1 28 28.0
T. Johnson Nico Johnson 1 23 23.0
T. Johnson Zach Petrill 2 21 10.0
T. Johnson Doug Sponyoe 1 9 9.0

Return

Team Player Returns Yards TD Avg
T. Johnson Richie Anderson 2 24 12.0
T. Johnson Nico Johnson 3 35 11.7
River Hill Evan Griffin 3 48 16.0
T. Johnson Josh McClain 2 31 15.5
River Hill Randall Lawson 2 12 6.0

Kicking

Team Player FG/FGA XP/XPA
River Hill Davis Grove 5/6
T. Johnson Paul McLister 1/1

 

SCORING

Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
River Hill 7 7 13 14 41
Thomas Johnson 0 7 0 6 13

RH-Vaughn 8 run (Grove kick)

TJ- Berney 1 run (McLister kick)

RH-Wells 1 run (Grove kick)

RH- Wells 63 run (Kick failed)

RH- Vaughn 2 run (Grove kick)

RH- Griffin 12 run (Grove kick)

RH-Vaughn 11 run (Grove kick)

TJ- Berney 7 run (Pass failed)

Closing Thoughts
It’s a shame that the game got so lopsided in the second half, but River Hill deserved to win by such a large margin. They came out in the second half ready to go, and dominated in the trenches. Raamah Vaughn and Aaron Wells turned in great performances, and anytime your defense can cause nine turnovers in a game, your team is probably going to win (think Ravens-Steelers from Week 1). River Hill bounced back from two early losses in the season to go on a torrid run, and the state title is the cherry on top of the sundae.
It’s been a weekend full of good football action, although the two final games were much more lopsided and a bit less entertaining than the first two. Regardless, the four state championship tilts were great in that they celebrated high school football in the state of Maryland.
It’s been my pleasure to cover these games all weekend, and thanks to the decent amount of you who contacted me on Twitter, and read these posts over the last two days. It means a lot. Continue to read Baltimore Sports Report for additional high school sports coverage.