PREP RECAP (Second Round: Trinity shuts out Flomaton; Pike Road earns comeback win; Catholic advances
COMBINED REPORTS
Trinity 35, Flomston 0
FLOMATON -- Ross Sanders had 301 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns to lead the Wildcats to a 35-0 win over the Hurricanes in the second round of the Class 3A state football playoffs on Friday night.
Sanders’ remarkable performance was upstaged by a Trinity defense -- in which he plays a part -- that held Flomaton to one first down in the game. Trinity coach Brian Seymore, who became the winningest first-year coach in the history of the program after improving to 11-1, gave the credit to defensive coordinator Tommy Shoemaker and assistant coach Jon Shamburger for their game plan against the Hurricanes.
Trinity will face unbeaten Mobile Christian next Friday at Ragsdale-Boykin Field in the quarterfinals of the 3A state playoffs.
Sanders rushed for 164 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 25 carries, including his 3-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter for the game’s first points.
The senior also had four receptions for 137 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including his catch on a screen pass from Walker McClinton that turned into the first of three third-quarter touchdowns that broke the game open.
The Wildcats made it 21-0 late in the third quarter, then scored just 19 seconds later following a Flomaton fumble on the Hurricanes’ ensuing possession. McClinton then fired a 24-yard touchdown pass to Winston Phillips for a 28-0 lead that finished off the Hurricanes.
McClinton completed 10 of 19 passes for 211 yards and three touchdowns.
Defensively, Coleman Till led the Wildcats with seven tackles, followed by McClain Brown with six. Dalton Gaston had three tackles and three quarterback pressures, Chayman Wilkins had three tackles, including a tackle for loss and a sack, along with two passes defensed and Xavier Boswell had three tackles and four passes defensed.
Flomaton ends the season at 7-5, while Trinity’s 11 wins are the most since the 2010 season.
Catholic 24, T.R. Miller 14
Montgomery Catholic fell behind early but rallied to defeat T.R. Miller, 24-14, in the second round of the AHSAA Class 4A playoffs at Knights Field on Friday.
The win allows Catholic (12-0) to advance and will travel to Jacksonville (10-2) next Friday in the quarterfinals.T.R. Miller ends the season at 8-4.
The Tigers took an early 7-0 lead on Nathan Commander’s 3-yard run but Caleb McCreary answered with a score early in the second quarter to tie the game at 7-7.
A 90-yard interception return by Jayden Phifer put the Knights on top and later in the third, Josh Griffin added a score. Joseph Reeves finished the scoring in the same period with a 26-yard field goal.
McCreary finished with 131 yards and a score on 18 rushes while
Griffin had 83 yards and a touchdown. Myles Khatri led the defense with 10 tackles including two for loss. KJ Washington had seven tackles and three for loss.
Pike Road 31, Spanish Fort 17
PIKE ROAD - Pike Road trailed 17-0 at the half but rallied to advance to the third round of the Class 6A playoffs on Friday.
The rally started with a blocked punt by Trey Caver allowed Adrian Thornton to recover the loose ball for a touchdown. Later in the third, Cason Meyers threw a 79-yard touchdown pass to Jordan King to pull the Patriots to within three.
Hunter Ikerman tied the score with a 32-yard field goal and Pike Road followed with the go-ahead touchdown on a fourth-and-1 with Meyers connecting with King for 49 yards to give the Patriots the lead for good.
LaCedric Foster’s pick-6 sealed the win with just under a minute to play.
Meyers was 14 of 22 for 214 yards with two touchdown passes. King had four catches for 138 yards with two TD receptions including one for 75 yards and another for 49.
Pike Road (10-2) travels to Alexander City to face Benjamin Russell (10-2) next Friday.