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ARLINGTON -- Arlington Bowie coach Kenny Perry has implored his defense all season to play a more physical brand of football and his team responded Friday night with a masterpiece.
The Vols decimated District 3-5A rival Arlington 38-7 at Maverick Stadium to set up a showdown with Arlington Martin next week for the district title and top Division I seed.
Martin and Bowie have already clinched playoff spots.
"I think they're [the defense] getting there," Perry said. "If you look at where we were at against Mesquite to where we are now, then you see we've gotten better and better. We know we have the guys, the coaches are just grinding them and it's not just one guy."
Bowie (8-1, 6-0 in 3-5A) forced four turnovers, highlighted by a diving interception by senior cornerback Steve Wesley in the second half. Nico Small also picked off a pass in the first half by playing centerfield on a deep post route.
The Vols added a pair of fumble recoveries en route to a 4-1 advantage in turnovers.
"We played physical the whole game from the start and just came out ready," said senior linebacker Andre Chineme, who delivered several punishing hits. "We're getting better each game and just progressing. Next week, we're going to come out even better."
Bowie's offense continued to roll behind sophomore quarterback Tony James, who passed for 236 yards and a touchdown and led the Vols in rushing with 109 yards and two scores.
Running back Don Jerry scored on a pair of runs in the first half to help Bowie to a 24-0 lead at the break. He finished with 103 total yards.
Arlington (7-2, 4-2) cut the lead to 24-7 early in the second half on a 5-yard run by Brandon Washington, but costly turnovers and ill-timed penalties ended any chance of a comeback.
Colts standout linebacker Sammy Douglas intercepted a pass in the fourth and returned it 70 yards for a touchdown, but it was called back because of a holding penalty.
The loss snapped Arlington's four-game winning streak.
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