By Alan Goldenbach
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 27, 2008

Not only had Blake entered its homecoming game last night against Walter Johnson winless, but the Bengals had been outscored 96-0 in their past 10 quarters. However, Fridays still haven't been the toughest day of the week this fall for Blake junior Kwabena Asante.

Two weeks ago, seven veteran Blake players quit the team. It made walking past them in the hallway that much tougher for Asante.

"It hurts," Asante said. "They see me and they try to say, 'What's up?' But you can't look at them the same way."

Asante will have a nice retort Monday. The Bengals, despite dressing only 27 players, perilously low for a Maryland 4A program, earned their first victory, 19-6, over a Walter Johnson team that has not won a game on the field since the 2004 finale, but looked at this one as a prime chance to end that slump.

It hasn't been much better for Blake, though. Last night's victory was just Blake's third in 20 games and fifth in their past 34.

"I'm hungry," said Asante, who rushed for 107 yards on 14 carries, "and I believe we have a chance to turn things around here. I want to be a part of that."

Blake (1-3), which played its first season in 1998, has never won more than six games in a season, so success is measured in small doses. It's why Bengals Coach Tony Nazzarro was able to relish this victory.

"With what we've been going through, especially with the adversity [from the players quitting], it's real nice," Nazzarro said. "They've been working hard and they deserve it."

Asante said he and his teammates worked a little harder this week. He said he could sense a fear among his teammates that, heaven forbid, they would be the ones who let Walter Johnson win.

"It was a little scary," Asante said. "Everyone was calling for us to be the ones to end that streak, and we knew we couldn't let that happen. We couldn't be known for that."

Walter Johnson (0-4) took a 6-0 lead a minute into the second quarter on a two-yard run by senior Paul Okeyo, who was limited to playing just linebacker the rest of the game because of an ankle injury. It was an ominous sign for the Wildcats' offense. They couldn't muster much without him.

Asante scored on a 31-yard run just over a minute later to tie it. Midway through the quarter, after a Wildcats fumble, sophomore Brandon Simms made it 12-6 on an 11-yard run.

Asante returned the second half kickoff 74 yards for a touchdown to make it 19-6.

Blake 19, Walter Johnson 6 Getting Closer: Prior to this season, only one of Walter Johnson's previous 29 games on the field was decided by fewer than three touchdowns. Twice this season, the Wildcats have played opponents within that margin. Breaking Down: In addition to losing Paul Okeyo, Walter Johnson's offense also lost perhaps its next two most capable threats, junior running back Michael Pittsenberger and senior wide receiver Omar Zerbo, to injuries