Tyler George and Mark Ross set aside some practice time Thursday, getting extra repetitions in hopes of building their quarterback/wide receiver rapport even tighter.

The Hopewell duo then proceeded to use the newfound bond to put the stranglehold on Mars last night.

George connected with Ross on three touchdown passes, leading the visiting Vikings (2-0) to a dominating 34-7 non-conference victory against the Planets (1-1) at Mars Area Athletic Complex.

Time and time again, George threw beautifully precise passes to Ross, whose catches were just as sweet. The pair hooked up on scoring tosses of 20 and 22 yards in the first half -- both on fade passes into the end zone -- to stake the Vikings to a 14-0 halftime advantage. For good measure, the pair got together one more time in the fourth quarter on a 37-yard score, one in which Ross caught the ball with one hand after beating three Mars defenders.

A senior, George finished 7 of 10 for 171 yards and those three touchdowns. Ross, a junior, caught five of those for 125 yards. Afterward, neither was willing to accept responsibility for the success.

"He threw the ball perfect," Ross said of George. "Half of those catches I made tonight were because of him. That last one, if he didn't throw it there, there was no other place to catch it."

Said George, "I give credit to him. He really made some great catches out there."

Hopewell senior running back Drew Howard added a gigantic effort as well, rushing 20 times for 189 yards, including an 80-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter which served as the backbreaker.

The frustrating part of the loss for the Planets -- their first since moving up to Class AAA this season -- was not just the touchdown passes their defense surrendered, but rather the situations in which they occurred. In each instance, Hopewell had been penalized a play earlier, setting up some difficult scenarios -- 2nd and 18, 3rd and 18 and 3rd and 27. Each time, however, the Vikings responded.

"We have to be able to come up on third down," said Mars coach Scott Heinauer. "If we don't come up on third down, you obviously can't win football games. I think that was a factor tonight."

Another big factor was Hopewell's salty defense, which for much of the game made Mars hopeless. The Planets managed just nine first downs in the conference, most of which were amassed when the outcome was already decided. Planets running back Shane Kaclik was limited to just 54 yards on 11 carries, and quarterback John Brake was under pressure throughout en route to a 3 of 14 passing performance.

"We tried to load the box as much as we could to stop the running game, so we put a lot of pressure on our secondary," Hopewell coach Dave Vestal said. "We had to be disciplined, and I was really happy with how we played tonight."