In a wild second half, Kaseem Duke’s legs proved to be the difference.
The junior quarterback ran for 63 yards and Dunwoody’s final two touchdowns to help the Wildcats take a seesaw affair, 21-17 over Lakeside.
The final two quarters featured four lead changes, and Duke was a big reason for that. He gained 54 of his second-half yards on two carries, without either of which the Vikings (2-3) may very well have won.
The second one came as the biggest play in a decisive 8-play, 68-yard drive that ended with his 1-yard scoring plunge to provide Dunwoody (3-1) its final margin of victory with 1:37 left.
But six plays earlier, the end zone looked a long way away, facing third-and-4 from their own 38-yard line. Duke dropped back to pass, didn’t see an open man and sprinted around the right corner, working his way down the right sideline for 29 yards before heading out of bounds. A late hit added 15 more yards, setting up the winning score.
His first key run was even more stunning to Lakeside, on fourth-and-7 from the Vikings 25. Again, it was a broken-down passing play. Again, the right side of the defense opened up. And 25 untouched yards and a dive later, he hit the pylon to regain the lead for the Wildcats late in the third quarter.
After having zero runs in the first half, Duke finding his running legs provided just enough of an edge for the Wildcats.
“I think both of them were kind of busted plays,” Dunwoody coach Jim Showfety said, of Duke’s two long runs. “He was able to see some daylight, head for the first down and, next thing you know, he’s in the end zone. The line did a great job giving him time back there to see an opening. He saw all our receivers were covered, and then he just took off down the sidelines.”
Likewise impressive on the ground was Lakeside’s Kellyen Walker, who had 163 total yards – including a game-high 125 rushing on 25 carries – to be the pace setter for a Vikings offense that moved the ball well in the second half but didn’t have enough firepower to keep up with Dunwoody.
He had what could have been a game winner himself when he busted loose for a 46-yard score on a first-and-35 play with 4:46 left, breaking a tackle at the line and then outrunning the secondary to the end zone to give Lakeside a 17-14 lead.
It wasn’t enough, though. Lakeside got one more chance after Dunwoody’s final score, but the offense ran out of time at its own 34-yard line, eventually throwing a desperation interception to end the game.
Daniel Hinton added 76 yards on 15 carries for Dunwoody, who has its best record through four games since starting 4-0 in 2008 en route to a 12-1 season with a state quarterfinals appearance.
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