PREP ROUNDUP (Week 9): Holtville earns playoff home game; Stanhope tops Wetumpka

COMBINED REPORTS

Holtville 31, Sylacauga 27

HOLTVILLE – Drake Riordan’s field goal with just over three minutes remaining in the game lifted Holtville to a win and the second seed in Class 5A, Region 4 on Friday at Boykin-Chapman Field.

Drew Pickett rushed for 208 yards and four touchdowns while quarterback Braxton Buck added 111 yards passing for the Bulldogs. Pickett was also the leading receiver with eight catches for 58 yards.

Michael Forney and Copeland Gilliland led the Holtville defense with nine tackles and a sack each.

The Bulldogs (7-2, 4-2) will be at home for the first round of the 5A playoffs. The last time they played a home game in the post season was 1993, in a loss to St. Paul’s in Class 3A.

Holtville will finish the regular season next week at Reeltown.

Stanhope Elmore 23, Wetumpka 13

MILLBROOK – The Mustangs clinched a playoff spot with a solid defensive performance against their arch rivals Friday at Foshee-Henderson Field.

Stanhope Elmore limited Wetumpka to just 201 yards of total offense. Antonio Trone led the Mustangs with 115 yards and a score on 31 carries.

Amajhi Truss added a touchdown for Stanhope (5-4, 4-2). Quarterback Trey Killingsworth connected with tight end Chase Eddings for another score.

Robert Rose threw two touchdown passes to Tavarse Murphy and Rudarius Anthony and finished with 183 yards passing for the Indians (5-5, 4-2).

Both teams qualified for the playoffs but the seeding will be determined next week. A three-way tie with Wetumpka, Stanhope Elmore and Helena will be broken based on number of wins by non-region opponents.

Talladega 66, Elmore County 27

TALLADEGA – The Panthers fell to 1-8 on the season in a Class 5A, Region 4 loss to Talladega on Friday.

Sean Darnell had 123 yards and a touchdown passing while Jabari Murphy caught two TD passes in the loss for the Panthers (1-8, 0-6). C.J. Robinson and Zay Robinson each added a score while Nigel Scales scored on a fumble recovery.

Elmore County closes out the season next week against Jemison.

Eufaula 42, Sidney Lanier 6

Jacorian Wilson’s 12-yard touchdown run proved to be the lone bright spot in the Poets’ loss to Eufaula on Friday at Cramton Bowl.

The Tigers clinched the second seed in Class 6A, Region 2 with the win as quarterback Hess Horne passed for three touchdowns and ran for another.

The Tigers (8-2, 5-2) scored 42 unanswered points before Wilson’s fourth-quarter run for a score.

Lanier (3-6, 1-6) completed its season.

Montgomery Academy 36, Monroe County 6

MONROEVILLE --  Jashawn Cooper ran 67 yards for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage and added an 11-yard touchdown run in the second quarter as the Eagles improved to 9-0 with a 35-6 win over 3A Region 3 opponent Monroe County on Friday.

Cooper finished with 81 yards to lead all the Eagles, but Ben Harris added 64 yards and a touchdown, Carter Wallis finished with 42 rushing yards and Britton Kohn had 12 rushing yards to go along with his 3 of 6 passing night for 48 yards.

Wallis scored on a 17-yard run late in the first half, Jamal Cooper added an 8-yard touchdown run a minute into the second quarter and Jashawn Cooper and Harris (2-yard run) closed out the half with touchdown runs for a comfortable lead.

Jackson Kelly led the defensive effort with six tackles.

The Eagles close out the regular season with a game at Alabama Christian on Thursday before playing host to a Region 2 opponent in the first round of the 3A playoffs on Nov. 6.

Alabama Christian 32, Bullock County 14

UNION SPRINGS – Jalen Clark completed 10 of 13 passes for 155 yards and a pair of touchdowns and rushed 10 times for 68 yards and a touchdown to help the Eagles complete an undefeated region record with a 32-14 win at Bullock County High on Friday night.

Clark ran 27 yards to break a scoreless tie early in the second quarter and added an 11-yard pass to tailback Corey Landers for a 15-0 lead. Otasowie Dion added a 62-yard run on the final play of the first half for a 21-0 lead.

The Hornets got on the scoreboard with a long pass a minute into the second half but Clark put the Eagles back in command less than two minutes later with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Garrett Weathers. 

Aaron Treubig closed out the scoring with a 37-yard field goal with 4:53 remaining in the game. 

Dion finished as the Eagles’ leading rusher with 95 yards on four carries, while Landers added 77 yards on 14 carries. Landers also scored on his only reception of the night.

Hayes Hunt led the Eagle receivers with 72 yards on three receptions. Preston Hicks (23 yards) and Trey Schlemmer (19 yards) each added a pair of receptions.  

Defensively, Miller McCarthy led ACA with nine tackles, followed by Jack Thomas with five tackles, Khalil Jackson with five tackles and a sack and Schlemmer and Landers with four tackles each. Sanders Manning also had an interception. 

Alabama Christian (8-1) closes out regular-season play with a game at home against Montgomery Academy on Thursday before hosting the first round of the 4A state playoffs on Nov. 6.

Catholic 52, Goshen 6

GOSHEN – Catholic scored on all five possessions in the first half on the way to an easy region victory over Goshen on Friday night.

Jeremiah Cobb rushed for 161 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries and DJ Carter pulled in four receptions for 142 yards and three touchdowns as the Knights built a 31-0 halftime lead. 

Caleb McCreary, who completed 5 of 8 passes for 164 yards, threw the first of three touchdown passes to Carter for 13 yards on fourth down to cap the Knights’ opening possession. Callan Gadilhe kicked a field goal on the second possession, Cobb ran 42 yards to set up his 23-yard scoring run on the next play and McCreary completed touchdown strikes of 47 and 72 yards to Carter for a 31-0 lead.

Goshen’s first possession of the second half resulted in an interception return for a touchdown by Catholic linebacker TJ Dudley and Willie Sagers added a 15-yard touchdown run on the Knights’ initial second-half possession for a 45-0 lead.

Robbie Guice capped the Catholic scoring with a 50-yard scoring run for a 52-0 lead as Catholic improved to 7-0 in region play to give head coach Aubrey Blackwell his 50th career win.

Pat Ryan led the Catholic defense with nine tackles and an interception, while Dudley had eight stops and an interception.

Catholic (8-2) will take a week off before hosting the first round of the 3A state playoffs at home on Nov. 6.

St. James 35, Geneva 20

Cosner Harrison rushed for 157 yards and scored two of his three touchdowns in the second quarter as the Trojans shook off a slow start with a 35-20 win over Geneva on Friday night at Carlisle Field.

Harrison scored on runs of 3, 7 and 7 yards, the last one giving St. James a 28-0 lead less than a minute into the second half. KJ Jackson completed 10 of 16 passes for 169 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including a 13-yard pass to Clayton Craft for the game’s first points with 10:40 remaining in the second quarter.

After Harrison’s touchdown runs, Geneva staged a brief rally as Tim McReynolds returned a punt 57 yards for a touchdown and Damion Kemmerlin ran 10 yards for another Panther score, trimming the St. James’ lead to 28-12.

St. James (7-2) closes out the regular season with a game on Friday at Trinity, then returns home to host the first round of the 4A state playoffs on Nov. 6.

Trinity 37, Childersburg 6

CHILDERSBURG – Coleman Stanley ran for a pair of touchdowns and John David Bonner threw for a pair as Trinity closed out region play with a 37-6 win at Childersburg on Friday night.

Bonner, the starting quarterback, threw touchdown passes to Dawson Criswell and William Roberson while Stanley, who enters the game in goal line situations, ran for a pair of touchdowns to help the Wildcat offense.

Stanley scored on a quarterback keeper and ran in the two-point conversion to help Trinity wipe out a 6-0 deficit and take the lead for good. After Bonner’s pass to Criswell and a touchdown by Jim Portis, Stanley added another scoring run for a 30-6 halftime lead.

Trinity (7-2) closes out the regular season at home on Friday against St. James before hosting the first round of the 3A state playoffs on Nov. 6.

Pike Road 35, Greenville 7

GREENVILLE – Quinshon Judkins rushed for 154 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries as Pike Road defeated the Tigers 35-7 on Friday.

Judkins scored the game’s first touchdown on a 7-yard run and scored the Patriots’ last two touchdowns on runs of 38 and 5 yards.

Eli Clark completed 8 of 14 passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns, including a 60-yard touchdown play on a screen pass to Blake Durham.

Durham finished with 91 yards on four carries, while Trey Wallace had 47 yards on a pair of catches. Griffin Robinson’s only catch went for 24 yards and a touchdown.

Pike Road (9-0) returns home to play Booker T. Washington in the regular-season finale next Friday before playing host to Shelby County in the first round of the 5A state playoffs on Nov. 6.

Central-Clay County 33, Tallassee 0

LINEVILLE – Elisha McNeil rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries and the Tigers were held to 66 total yards as Central crushed Tallassee’s playoff hopes with a 33-0 shutout on Friday night.

Tallassee (2-7) was clinging to playoff hopes despite having to forfeit two region games to Talladega and Holtville in the past two weeks, but needed to beat Central while Elmore County beat Talladega.

Instead, the Tigers were shut out while Talladega defeated Elmore County 66-29.

The Central defense held the Tigers to 47 rushing yards while holding their leading rusher, Jalyn Daniels, to just 24 yards on 13 carries.

Tallassee closes out the 2020 season at home next week with a game against Geneva.