CLEVELAND TOWNSHIP, N.C. — For the second straight week, Cleveland’s dynamic offense was held way below its scoring average.

This time around, though, the defense was more than willing to pick up the slack.

In the No. 1 Rams’ 21-3 win over No. 16 Ashley in the second round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4A football playoffs, the defense answered the bell, holding Screaming Eagles 29 points below their season average.

Cleveland (12-0) returns home next Friday where they will host No. 8 Jordan, who defeated Apex Friendship, 41-14, in Durham.

Advancing to the third round, and more importantly, practicing on Thanksgiving has become a staple of the Cleveland program. Rams’ head coach Scott Riley told his team it’s a privilege to get that third-round Thanksgiving holiday practice.

The Cleveland defense ate early, feasting on the Screaming Eagles, who were kept out of the endzone for the first time this season.

“We asked them to be tough tonight and be aggressive,” Riley said about his defensive unit. “They did that. I’m really proud of the effort they had tonight. That’s a really good football team with 18 starters who are seniors. Those are tough teams to knock out the playoffs, if you only give up three points you’re going to go pretty far.”

Cleveland picked off Jackson Eller twice and stopped Ashley four times on fourth down.

Ashley was hoping to make its first trip to the third round of the playoffs. Last week, it won at home in the playoffs for the first time in school history.

Rams’ sophomore Theron Batiste picked off Eller in the second quarter, which led to the first touchdown of the night, a 1-yard run from Jackson Byrd.

Cleveland led 7-3 at the break, but Ashley (9-3) drove the length of the field on the opening possession of the second half. The Screaming Eagles made it to the 2-yard line, but Cleveland stopped Bryson Lovelace short of the line to gain. The Rams quickly answered, this time when Byrd found Deangelo Ruffin, Jr. for a 62-yard touchdown, making it 14-3 after the successful extra point.

Ashley faced another 4th and 1, but Cleveland’s Daniel Lugo forced himself into the backfield for the stop late in the third. On the first play of the fourth, Porter Bennett scored from the 1 for the final score.

The Rams would stop the Screaming Eagles on a 4th and 7 and a 4th and 8 on ensuing possessions. Bennett then picked off Eller on the third Ashley drive of the fourth.

Known for its high-powered offense, Cleveland’s defense might be making a name for itself this postseason.

“We’re just a fast, physical defense,” Rams’ junior Cameron Melvin said. “We run to the ball. We just dogs, we like to run to the ball.”

While it took the Cleveland offense an entire quarter before finding the end zone, the defense gave them plenty of chances to get warmed up.

“We made some mistakes on offense early in the game, but our defense came in clutch,” Byrd said. “They are definitely helping us out.”

Riley called it his team’s most complete game on defense this season. That’s an impressive statement considering the Rams had a four-game stretch where they held their opponents scoreless. It matters more in the postseason, though, and if they are at their apex on defense, this time of the year, Riley will take it.

“Defense wins championships,” Riley said. “You can score a lot of points, but you have to get some stops at some key points.”