PREP RECAPS (Week 9): ACA, MA clinch playoff spots; Auburn tops Prattville; Lowndes wins region
COMBINED REPORTS
Alabama Christian Academy 56, Southside Selma 38
SELMA -- Hayes Hunt threw five touchdown passes and Preston Hicks scored on both offense and defense to help the Eagles clinch the third seed in 3A Region 3 with a 56-38 win over Southside on Friday night.
ACA (6-3) will travel to Daphne next Friday to play Bayside Academy to close out the regular season, then will travel to Randolph County for the first round of the 3A state playoffs on Nov. 4. Southside-Selma (5-4) will travel to Dadeville for a first-round game in two weeks.
Hunt completed 15 of 23 passes for 206 yards while throwing touchdown passes to Otasowie Dion, Avery Stuart and Preston Hicks. The 6-yard touchdown pass to Dion was the game’s first points, but the Panthers rallied with a touchdown and two-point conversion for an 8-7 lead. Hunt came back with a 29-yard pass to Stuart and a 43-yard pass to Hicks to give ACA a 21-8 halftime lead.
Hicks opened the scoring in the second half with a 46-yard interception return for a touchdown and added a 42-yard reception for another score as ACA built a 42-14 lead.
Corey Landers added scoring runs of 5 and 15 yards in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. Landers finished with 164 yards on 17 carries.
Stuart had five receptions for 69 yards and a pair of touchdowns, Hicks had three catches for 101 yards and a pair of touchdowns and Dion had three catches for 22 yards, including the touchdown.
Defensively, William Milner and Blake Shaw had 10 tackles each to lead ACA. Brady Smith and Shaw had sacks.
Montgomery Academy 40, Geneva 13
GENEVA -- Parker Cook threw for three touchdowns to secure the final playoff berth for Montgomery Academy in 4A Region 2 with a 40-13 win over Geneva at Hugh Owen Stadium on Friday.
Cook completed 8 of 10 passes for 244 yards, throwing two touchdown passes to DJ Vinson and another to Thomas Woodward to help the Eagles tie a school record with their 10th consecutive playoff berth, the longest streak in the River Region.
Jashawn Cooper rushed for 58 yards and a touchdown, while Vinson had 152 receiving yards and Woodward had 80 receiving yards and 22 rushing yards.
Defensively, Will Hardin had seven tackles and a fumble recovery to lead the Eagles. Arch Lee had six tackles and a fumble recovery, Woodward had five tackles and Greer Armstrong had four tackles.
Montgomery Academy (5-5) will take a week off before traveling to Brewton to play T.R. Miller in the first round of the 4A state playoffs on Nov. 4.
Trinity 58, Greensboro 0
The Wildcats celebrated Senior Night by piling up 333 total yards on offense and pitching a shutout on defense with a 58-0 win over Greensboro on Friday night at Ragsdale-Boykin Field to close out the regular season.
Trinity (8-2) will take a week off before playing host to Saks in the first round of the 3A state playoffs on Nov. 4.
The Wildcats found the perfect balance on offense, rushing for 166 yards while passing for 167. On the ground, JaMichael Jones rushed for 51 yards and a touchdown on just four carries, while Chase Parker added 77 yards and a touchdown on six carries.
In the air, Walker McClinton completed 9 of 11 passes for 167 yards and four touchdowns to four different receivers.
DM Lieux had a pair of receptions for 20 yards and a touchdown and Norris Pemberton had a pair of catches for 54 yards and a touchdown to lead the aerial assault. John Morris and Camaree Jackson also had a reception for a touchdown and Matthew Schroll accounted for another touchdown for the Wildcats.
Defensively, Harrison Johnson had three tackles, including one for loss, Schroll had three tackles and Ross Sanders had three tackles, including one for loss and a sack.
Stanhope Elmore 27, Park Crossing 6
The Mustangs earned their third win of the season while keeping the Thunderbirds winless at Cramton Bowl on Friday.
The Mustangs got two touchdown passes from Jacob Bryant , a rushing TD from Jackson Thomas and an interception returned for a touchdown for Dashaun Caffee for their points.
James Graham had a 12-yard touchdown run for the Thunderbirds.
Park Crossing ends its season with a 0-9 record and have lost 13 straight games dating back to last season. Removing forfeits from last year, the Thunderbirds’ last win came on Oct. 1, 2020 against Sidney Lanier.
Stanhope Elmore (3-6, 3-3) will complete its season next week at Minor.
Auburn 37, Prattville 29
PRATTVILLE - The Lions’ chances to make the Class 7A playoffs took a hit on Friday with a home loss to the Tigers.
Prattville fell behind 27-0 at the half but was within eight points in the final two minutes of the game. The Lions returned a kickoff 99 yards with Kam Shanks doing the majority of the damage with just over two minutes left. But Prattville was unable to recover an onside kick.
With the loss, Prattville fell to 6-3 overall and 4-3 in Class 7A, Region 2. With Dothan’s win over Opelika and Enterprise’s victory over Robert E. Lee last week, the Lions will need a win over Central-Phenix City next week and loss by both Dothan and Enterprise to make the playoffs.
Elmore County 63, Holtville 48
ECLECTIC - Payton Stephenson had 270 yards in total offense and CJ Wilkes added 164 yards rushing in the Panthers’ non-region win over rival Holtville at Burt-Haynie Field on Friday.
Stephenson passed for 209 yards and two touchdowns and added five rushing touchdowns for the Panthers, who won for the sixth time this season, the most since 2018.
Wilkes added two scores while Jabari Murphy and Drake Bolton each had touchdown catches for Elmore County (6-3). Murphy had 156 yards on seven receptions.
Holtville got two touchdown passes from Keiland Baker and three rushing touchdowns from Shawn Brackett in a losing effort. Brackett finished with 163 yards on 21 carries plus a 57-yard reception for a score..Erik Adkins added a touchdown catch for the Bulldogs.
The Panthers close out the regular season next week at Jemison. Holtville (3-6) plays host to Tallassee. Both teams have clinched a playoff bid.
AISA
Lowndes Academy 21, Crenshaw Christian 20
LUVERNE -- The Rebels rallied from a two-touchdown deficit in the second half, using a two-point conversion run by Cooper Dansby for the game-winning points in a battle for the Class A Region 1 championship at Crenshaw Christian on Friday night.
Drake Mills rushed for 101 yards on 20 carries, scoring on runs of 1 and 10 yards to stake Crenshaw Christian to a 20-7 lead late in the first quarter.
Clayton Hussey, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 156 yards and a pair of touchdowns while rushing for 123 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, brought the Rebels back, cutting a 14-0 deficit in half with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Dansby in the first quarter and a 23-yard touchdown pass to Scott Stinson in the third quarter to pull Lowndes within 20-13.
Hussey scored on a 7-yard run in the fourth quarter to pull within a point, then handed to Dansby for the two-point conversion and the win.
Stinson had four receptions for 49 yards and a touchdown, Noah Smith had four receptions for 48 yards and Dansby had three catches for 42 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Kasen Dismukes led the Rebels with nine tackles, Dansby had seven and Hussey had six tackles and an interception.
Mills led the Crenshaw defense with 14 tackles.
Lowndes Academy (7-2) will travel to Hope Hull next Friday to close out the regular season against Hooper Academy, then return home to play host to Snook Christian in the first round of the A state playoffs on Nov. 4.
Crenshaw Christian (6-3) will travel to Snook Christian next Friday, then return home to host Wilcox Academy in the first round of the A state playoffs on Nov. 4.
Macon East Academy 42, Abbeville Christian 27
ABBEVILLE -- Gabe Spencer and Deonte Powell scored three touchdowns each as the Knights wrapped up the third seed in the region with a 42-27 win over the Generals on Friday.
Spencer rushed for 133 yards on 21 carries, scoring on runs of 56 and 60 yards while returning an interception 60 yards for a third touchdown.
Powell completed 11 of 18 passes for 171 yards and three touchdowns, throwing two to Sanders Manning and another to Keagan Roney. Manning had six receptions for 105 yards, including touchdown receptions of 21 and 61 yards, while Roney had three receptions and accounted for the other touchdown.
Defensively, Zach Brown had 14 tackles and a sack, Wade Desmarais had 11 tackles and a pair of sacks and Dalton Nickles had six tackles and returned an interception for a touchdown.
Macon East (6-3) closes out the regular season at Autauga Academy next week before going on the road to Clarke Prep for the first round of the AA state playoffs on Nov. 4.
Abbeville Christian (3-6) closes out the regular season next Friday at home against Lakeside before traveling to Patrician Academy for the first round of the AA state playoffs.
Chambers Academy 42, Hooper Academy 7
LAFAYETTE -- Zach Rusely rushed for 84 yards and scored the Colts’ only touchdown in a 42-7 loss to region champion Chambers Academy on Friday night.
RJ Coker added 65 rushing yards and 24 receiving yards, while Slade Russell added 39 rushing yards as Hooper struggled to find any offensive rhythm against the Rebels.
Defensively, Jeremy Williams had six tackles to lead the Colts, followed by Owen Stockenger with five tackles and a sack, Sam Moss with five tackles and Rusely with five tackles.
Hooper (2-7) returns home to close out the 2022 season next week against defending A state champion Lowndes.
Chambers (7-2) won its seventh consecutive game and travels to Glenwood next week before playing host to Escambia Academy in the first round of the AA state playoffs on Nov. 4.
Edgewood Academy 31, Lakeside School 12
EUFAULA -- Austin Champion threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as the Wildcats won their third consecutive game on Thursday night.
Champion completed 10 of 14 passes for 159 yards, including touchdown passes of 41 yards to Tyler Wynn, 9 yards to Brody Whitt and 6 yards to JB Collier. Champion also had 67 yards on five carries, including a 1-yard quarterback sneak with 17 seconds left in the second quarter to give Edgewood a 25-6 halftime lead.
Gabe LeMaster also returned an interception for a touchdown as the Wildcats scored the first 19 points in the game.
Defensively, Cooper Freeman had seven tackles, followed by Michael McLing with six.
Edgewood (5-4) travels to Auburn to play Lee-Scott next week before returning home to play host to Banks Academy in the first round of the AA state playoffs on Nov. 4. Edgewood lost to Banks 47-19 at home on Sept. 29.
Lakeside (3-6) will travel to Abbeville Christian next week before traveling to Jackson Academy in the first round of the A state playoffs on Nov. 4.
AISA SCOREBOARD
Monroe Academy 22, Autauga Academy 16
Valiant Cross Academy 23, Bessemer Academy 9
Lee-Scott Academy 49, Fort Dale Academy 14
Glenwood School 63, Morgan Academy 32
Banks Academy 34, Pickens Academy 6
Patrician Academy 48, Clarke Prep School 7
Macon East Academy 42, Abbeville Christian 27
Chambers Academy 42, Hooper Academy 7
Edgewood Academy 31, Lakeside School 12
Snook Christian 46, Sparta Academy 32
Jackson Academy 50, Wilcox Academy 22
Southern Academy 34, Coosa Valley Academy 0
Lowndes Academy 21, Crenshaw Christian 20
AISA PLAYOFFS (Nov. 4)
CLASS AAA
Autauga Academy at Morgan Academy
Valiant Cross Academy at Monroe Academy
Lee-Scott Academy -- bye
Glenwood School -- bye
CLASS AA
Escambia Academy at Chambers Academy
Banks Academy at Edgewood Academy
Macon East Academy at Clarke Prep School
Abbeville Christian at Patrician Academy
CLASS A
Snook Christian at Lowndes Academy
Wilcox Academy at Crenshaw Christian
Southern Academy at South Choctaw Academy
Lakeside School at Jackson Academy