Cedar Grove is the Region 4-AAA champion. But so is Blessed Trinity.
In a defensive struggle, the weather was too much. Following a long lightning delay at the end of regulation, the teams decided the field wasn’t in adequate playing condition, and the game ended in a 13-13 tie.
The teams are co-region champs, giving Cedar Grove its first region title since 1991. A post-game coin flip, though, handed the region’s No. 1 seed to Blessed Trinity (9-0-1, 5-0-1), with the Saints (8-1-1, 5-0-1) taking the No. 2.
“The guys really wanted to play, no matter what,” coach Jermaine Smith said. “I told the guys, ‘The best way to see them again is to continue to win.’ Everything might not happen how you want it to, but everything happens for a reason.”
The game was nearly within Cedar Grove’s grasp in the moments of regulation, but that was when the wet weather struck first.
As the clock ticked inside 5 seconds, and the Saints out of timeouts, quarterback Jelani Woods took the snap in order to spike it and stop the clock to take a 22-yard field goal to win.
But he never got a firm grip on the wet and muddy ball, which slipped out of his grasp and onto the ground, where Blessed Trinity grabbed it in the end zone.
That followed Blessed Trinity completing its second-half comeback, tying the game after trailing 13-7 at the half with a 10-play, 51-yard drive that ended with a 26-yard field goal with 2:54 left.
That was the Titans’ second drive of 10-plus plays in the second half, both resulting in field goals that knotted the game at the end of regulation.
The kicking game got them back tied, but it was the second-half defensive effort that gave them the opportunity to catch up.
After the Cedar Grove offense outgained the Titans 173-90 in the first half and scored two touchdowns, Blessed Trinity played a far better bend-but-don’t-break style in the final two quarters, pitching a shutout after halftime.
Once again, the rain played a role, limiting the opportunities for either team on offense, and the Titans took advantage.
“We played the run,” Blessed Trinity coach Tim McFarlin said. “We just manned up on the outside. It’s just so hard to throw the ball in this weather. Yards were hard to come by on that field for both teams. It was a defensive game; we thought defense and the kicking game was going to win it or lose it.”
Of course, nobody expected there would be a third option.
Cedar Grove was led by LaBron Morris, who had a game-high 131 rushing yards on 23 attempts. Milton Shelton had 102 yards on 28 carries to pace the Titans.
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