Hough QB tosses 4 TD passes, leads No. 1 Huskies past Providence

Quarterback Kennard Bonner-Steward passed for 266 yards and four touchdowns as Hough, ranked No. 1 in the Observer’s Sweet 16, ran away from Providence in the second half for a 48-10 victory over the visiting Panthers.

Providence, which beat the Huskies 31-27 in last year’s meeting of the teams, rallied from an early 20-0 deficit to get back in the game with a 28-yard field goal by Eddie Czaplicki just before halftime and an early second-half touchdown set up by a recovery of a high snap on a Hough punt attempt.

But the Huskies scored four unanswered touchdowns the rest of the way, the last two on runs of 4 and 1 yards by Kwesi Kyei-Fordjour in the fourth quarter.

Records: Hough 2-0; Providence 1-1.

Three who mattered

Bonner-Steward, Hough: Senior quarterback threw three touchdown passes in the first half to put the Huskies in control of the game early.

Evan Pryor, Hough: Sophomore running back was on the receiving end of two of those touchdown passes, for 12 and 36 yards, and added an 8-yard scoring run in the second half.

Mason Boothe, Providence: Senior quarterback’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Will Kakavitsas gave the Panthers a last glimmer of hope early in the second half, trimming Hough’s lead to 20-10 before the Huskies pulled away for good.

Worth mentioning

▪ The Huskies made up for some rough edges — the botched snap from center and a blocked punt by Providence early in the game — with a solid performance on defense. Hough allowed the Panthers just 20 rushing yards, only 1 in the first half.

▪ Hough wide receiver Nolan Groulx made the game’s two longest plays on consecutive possessions near the end of the third quarter. His 54-yard catch and run to the Providence 2 set up his own touchdown on another pass from Bonner-Steward on the next play. And a 45-yard pass reception on the next possession was followed by Pryor’s 8-yard score.

What's next

Hough is at Concord at 7:30 p.m. Friday; Providence hosts Myers Park at 7.