“From the start, from the first play, it just started off intense,” said junior quarterback Dallas Allen-Hall, who began the scoring with a rushing touchdown. “We came out knowing we wanted to get something done. We didn’t want to think negative, we didn’t want to lose yards. We wanted to go forward. …We’re on a mission.”

A series of costly penalties slowed the pace after the Warriors’ first touchdown, but their defense did the rest in a 12-0 win, including a third-quarter pick-six from defensive end William Lewis.

“We got more excited to do more things and maybe make it to the Turkey Bowl again,” Lewis said. “We just had everything in our minds at once. We’re just ready to play.”

For their next game, the Warriors will attempt to upset Anacostia’s two-game winning streak on Friday.

Trent Hayes has many duties as a senior captain for Brentsville District. He’s a dynamic pass-catcher on offense, an anchor of the team’s defense at safety and also the starting punt returner.

Hayes is used to assuming responsibility for the Nokesville program — he has shouldered various team duties for more than a decade. At age 8 he was a ballboy, in charge of tossing footballs to referees after long incompletions or turnovers. In eighth grade he learned the team’s playbook before eventually reaching the high school level as a backup cornerback and wide receiver.

“Brentsville’s been part of my football career ever since I can remember,” Hayes said.

His father, Troy Hayes, has been the quarterbacks coach for the Tigers for 13 years, and Trent grew up watching his older brother, Guy, play quarterback for the team.

Hayes was a frequent visitor of the team’s practices in his youth, soaking in the game from the sidelines in addition to his duties as a ballboy on game days. He cherishes those memories, experiences he thinks have turned him into a smarter, more experienced player.

“We kind of joke with him, he’s the old-time veteran who’s been at Brentsville forever,” Coach Loren White said.

Now, it’s his turn to truly make his mark for the Tigers, who hope to make another run at a Virginia Class 3 title after falling in the state semifinals last fall.

Hayes hauled in his first touchdown of the season Friday in a 41-7 win over James Wood, the team’s second-straight win in a strong start to the season.

Miles Halbert, Northern: The junior wide receiver had a career game in the Patriots’ 47-7 win over Westlake, catching eight passes for 333 yards and three touchdowns. He also grabbed an interception on defense.

Jeremiah Wright, Anacostia: With little more than half a minute on the clock, the senior quarterback threw the game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Keion Williams to beat Ballou, 22-21.

Kris Jones, Fairfax: The Georgia commit scored a touchdown on both offense and defense last as the Lions crushed Oakton.

Darien Mayo, Good Counsel: The senior Clemson commit got the Falcons back on track with three sacks, four quarterback pressures and a fumble recovery in a 40-14 win over Jones (Fla.).

Anacostia at H.D. Woodson, Friday, 6 p.m.

Paint Branch at Sherwood, Friday, 6:30

No. 1 DeMatha at No. 3 Freedom (Woodbridge), Friday, 7 p.m.

Oxon Hill at No. 7 C.H. Flowers, Friday, 7 p.m.

Avit, Churchill run past Seneca Valley

The first week of any season is defined by uncertainty. It’s always hard to guess what an opponent might present. Coming into his team’s opener Friday night, Churchill Coach Joe Rydzewski knew only a few things about Seneca Valley.

“We knew they had some athletes and we knew they were good at getting to the football and making some hits,” Rydzewski said. “So we were just hoping we could get it to the second half and have David Avit wear them down from there.”

Not a bad plan, considering David Avit is a 5-foot-11, 225-pound senior running back. The younger brother of wideout Ezekiel Avit, who starred for the Bulldogs last year and is now playing at Maryland, Avit is a bruising back with surprising agility. On Friday, he had 28 carries for 268 yards and three touchdowns as Churchill earned a strong 27-7 win to open the season.

“Anytime you’re playing a Week 1, if the effort is there you can fix all the other mistakes. And the effort was there, so we feel good about it,” Rydzewski said.

Now in his third season at Churchill, Rydzewski feels everyone is on the same page about the mission of the team and he said he trusts his senior class to emphasize that message. Coming off a 9-3 campaign in 2022, Churchill will look to level-up in Montgomery County this fall. That starts with facing Bethesda-Chevy Chase this weekend.

“We are definitely a one-week-at-a-time team. So, yes, it feels great to be 1-0,” the coach said. “But it’s still just one week.”

Tough part is behind Episcopal

After two years away from his home province of Nova Scotia, Episcopal senior Kyle Park seems to have a good handle on Virginia high school football. So much so, in fact, that the offensive lineman has boiled down the experience to two principles: they care a lot more about the sport down here, and the summer weather’s a lot more forgiving up there.

This preseason, as Episcopal Coach Kadeem Rodgers prepared his roster with the hopes of a repeat in the Interstate Athletic Conference, he reminded Park of those declarations. All offseason, he asked his team, “What does it take to break you?”

“The air’s not as thick up there,” Park said, chuckling. “When I came down here, I started to question if I was ready. I know I am now. But Coach tries to challenge us every day, and no one has quit. I don’t see a whole lot of change this year, other than the intensity.”

Before and after every practice, 18 seniors lead the Maroon through arduous conditioning drills in preparation for their season, which begins Saturday at home against St. Michael the Archangel. According to senior running back Cedric Benning, they saw those results pay dividends last year, and expect more of the same this fall.

“Whenever we play a team and we see their hands on their hips and their helmets, we know they’re broken,” Benning said. “We don’t get tired. We’ve been in that situation before.”

But Rodgers’s query on exhaustion is only his second most popular question. His favorite inquiry: “Give me something I don’t know about another player.” Since Episcopal is a boarding school, he expects his players to know the answer. Benning said they always do.

“Then we go out there, and we play for each other,” Benning said.