Creekside’s starting offensive line walked behind as their teammates entered the field before the Seminoles’ Region 6-AAAAA tilt with Mays. That massive group led the rest of the way however, besting the Raiders’ defensive line in a 13-7 tug-of-war Friday night.
Behind homecoming king Marquell Harrell and several other major college prospects, Bricen Terry ran for 176 yards on 40 carries and gave Creekside (5-1, 3-0 in Region 6-AAAAA) a leg up in the region championship race. Mays held tight and drove inside the Creekside 30 with less than two minutes to play before quarterback Asahnia Aderhold missed on consecutive passes to turn the ball over.
Aderhold, who was 4-of-9 for 38 yards on the final drive, saw Tyshawn Brown drop a pass in the end zone that would have tied the game. Mays (4-2, 2-1) struggled to find offensive rhythm throughout, committing several procedure penalties and rushing for less than 50 yards until the fourth quarter. The Raiders’ lone score came with 7:55 remaining, when Randercous Davis found Carey Wimberly on a 4-yard jump pass.
“It’s taken some time for our defense to grow up this season, and we grew up tonight,” Creekside coach Olten Downs said. “We’ll take an ugly win every time, any way we can get them.”
Late in the first quarter Creekside drove inside the Mays 15 before Francisco Alejandre hit a 38-yard field goal to put the Seminoles ahead with 3:02 to play.
With 5:26 to play before halftime, Creekside quarterback Felix Harper finished a 12-play, 62-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Myles Clay, who climbed the back of a Mays defender to haul in the pass. Mays forced fourth down two plays earlier, but Harper connected with Tysean Carter on a 4-yard pass at the Mays 22 to continue the drive. The Seminoles scored three plays later.
Despite holding Mays to 42 total yards in the first two quarters, Creekside maintained the shutout at halftime with a mistake. Ferlando Jordan intercepted Harper at the Creekside 31, but the Seminoles stalled Mays after Aderhold’s 24-yard run moved the Raiders inside the 10. Before Mays kicker Keenan Anderson hit a 35-yard field goal as time expired, Creekside was called for an offside penalty. Anderson’s second attempt from 30 yards out missed to the left.
