San Diego U-T Preps

Lawrence Walker, who prefers to be called Lee — as in leader — knew something had to happen to nail down a victory over Lincoln.

After picking off a pair of passes, Walker went one better when he gathered in a line-drive punt, went down the left side and put in a few nifty moves on his own, going 54 yards for the clinching score in a 20-7 victory over the visiting Hornets.

“I’m a leader, I just thought ‘I have to do it,’?” said the 6-foot senior. “The interceptions were nice, but scoring the TD was best because we needed the points.”

The 10th-ranked Warhawks succeeded in the hard-hitting season opener by making sure Pierre Cormier got the ball. Cormier got the new season off to a big start by gaining 210 yards on 17 carries, including an 83-yard TD to give the Warhawks a 14-0 advantage.

This game was supposed to pit Madison’s running game against Lincoln’s tall and talented passing game.

But when 6-3 Tyree Robinson suffered a foot fracture two weeks ago and with 6-4 Kevon Mitchell’s availability still in question, the inconsistent Hornets’ aerial attack was held to mid-range gains.

The Warhawks defense contributed mightily in the first 24 minutes, picking up six points when Kamden Valencia pounced on a loose ball in the end zone for the first score.