Class A Blog: What went down in Round Two

Zach Jackson caught two touchdown passes and also had two interceptions to lead Holy Innocents’ (11-1) past visiting Savannah Country Day (4-7). The Golden Bears led 7-0 after one quarter, 28-0 at halftime and 42-0 going into the fourth quarter. William Wright tossed the pair of scoring strikes to Jackson from 37 and 13 yards out. Drew Bomar put the first points on the board with a 14-yard run and he capped off the scoring with a 55-yard scamper. Jacobi Murray also had two touchdown runs for Holy Innocents’.

R2 No. 1 Eagle’s Landing Christian 56, R8 No. 2 Athens Academy 7

ELCA (6-6) remained unbeaten against Athens Academy (8-4) in five games after blowing out the Spartans, 56-7. Brandon Hood scored all three of his touchdowns in the first quarter as Eagle’s Landing Christian quickly pulled away from visiting Athens Academy. The Chargers led 28-7 after one quarter and 49-7 at halftime before easing through the second half. Charlie Gilliam threw four touchdown passes — two to Colton Hood and also a pair to RJ Johnson. Peter Simmons tacked on the final touchdown for Eagle’s Landing Christian with a 31-yard run.

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R7 No. 1 Darlington 24, R1 No. 2 Tattnall Square 14

Darlington (11-1) rallied from a 7-6 deficit to lead 14-7 at the half. and grabbed the lead (14-7) early in the third quarter with a Caleb Thompson 1-yard plunge and Patrick Shelley conversion to Will Bagby. The Tigers stopped Tattnall Square (9-2) on 4th down and goal at the 1-yard line and Patrick Shelley broke loose for an 87-yard touchdown a few plays later to give Darlington a 21-7 lead. Ryland Scott tacked on a 27-yard field goal with 3:26 left in the game to make it 24-7 and Tattnall returned to the endzone on a Clay Rowland touchdown pass to Antone Johnson before Darlington recovered the onside attempt and ran out the clock.

R4 No. 1 Trinity Christian 48, R8 No. 3 Athens Christian 14

No. 1 ranked Trinity Christian (11-0) went into the half with a 48-7 lead. Dominick Cosper rushed for four touchdowns and David Dallas tossed touchdown passes to his twin brother Josh, Javan Harrison and Brock Rainwater. Athens Christian senior Johne’ss Davis had 17 carries for 231 yards and scored both touchdowns for the Eagles (7-5).

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at R6 No. 1 Fellowship Christian 30, R4 No. 2 Pacelli 7

Both Fellowship Christian (11-1) and St. Anne-Pacelli (8-3) scored on touchdown passes within the first 30 seconds of the game, but Fellowship didn’t allow a single point after that. The Paladins offense, meanwhile, scored on drives of 77 yards and 44 yards and ended the night with three Caleb McMickle touchdown passes.

R3 No. 1 Calvary Day 35, R5 No. 2 Wesleyan 0

Following a scoreless first quarter, Calvary Day (12-0) seized advantages of 21-0 at halftime and 28-0 going into the fourth as it rolled over visiting Wesleyan (8-4). Donovan Johnson scored two touchdowns for the Cavaliers, including one from 30 yards out to cap off the night’s scoring. Jake Merklinger scored on an 11-yard quarterback keeper and also threw touchdown passes to DeAndre Singleton Jr. and Edward Coleman. Calvary Day’s shutout was aided by interceptions for Antonio Butts Jr., Trevor Strowbridge, and Barry Young. The Cavaliers will go up against Fellowship Christian in the quarterfinals.

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R8 No. 1 Prince Avenue Christian 52, R4 No. 3 Brookstone 0

Prince Avenue Christian (11-1) junior QB Aaron Philo threw five touchdowns and rushed for a another, while Bailey Stockton scored on an interception return. Bryson Franklin made a 45-yard field goal with two minutes left for the final points of the night. The Wolverines (11-1) have won eleven-straight games. Brookstone finished the season 7-4.

R1 No. 1. First Presbyterian 31, R5 No. 3 Mount Vernon Presbyterian 0

The second-round shutout victory puts the Vikings (10-2) through to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2012. Junior Griffin Green led the team in rushing with 23 carries for 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Sophomore quarterback Jakhari Williams was 10-of-12 passing for 142 yards through the air. Senior Jackson Moore reached the end zone twice, once off a 22-yard reverse in the first quarter and again off a 68-yard touchdown pass from Williams in the third. The 10 wins this season for First Presbyterian are the most for the Vikings since they joined the GHSA in 2010 and the most since they finished 11-3 and lost in the Georgia Independent School Association finals in 2004. Mount Vernon finished the season 7-5.

PUBLIC

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R5 No. 1 Macon County 42, R3 No. 2 Emanuel County Institute 10

Senior QB Landon Austin was unstoppable in leading Macon County (11-0) to a blowout win over ECI (9-3). He completed five of six passes for 113 yards and a 60-yard touchdown pass to senior Shelquavious Byce. Austin also ran for 107 yards on just six carries, half of which went for touchdowns, including a 66-yarder. Junior RB Marlon Mitchell led all rushers with 190 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown run of 59 yards.

R2 No. 1 Irwin County 51, R8 No. 2 Lincoln County 27

No. 1 ranked Irwin County (10-2) advanced to the quarterfinals for the ninth-straight season. Irwin rushed for 368 yards and were led by Damarkus Lundy’s team-high 104 yards and Shane Marshall’s 90-yards. Lincoln County (8-4) took an early 14-0 lead, but Irwin County got rolling with a safety and 20-yard Lundy touchdown run. Quarterback Cody Soliday connected with Bryce Clements two touchdowns to give Irwin County a 23-14 lead at the half. Soliday later scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak and Lundy added a 42-yard touchdown run in the third quarter and Marcus Edwards returned a kickoff for an Irwin County touchdown. Lincoln County also had a big offense night and Tevin Gartrell finished with 220 rushing yards on 19 carries.

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R5 No. 4 Manchester 19, R3 No. 3 McIntosh County Academy 13 (3OT)

Manchester (7-4) tied the game 7-7 early in the fourth quarter on Ty Hamp’s 3-yard run, tied the game again at 13-13 in the second overtime on a 20-yard touchdown pass from Cam Long to Daryus Bryant, and then won the game in the third overtime period on Long’s 1-yard run before holding McIntosh County Academy (6-5) out of the end zone on the Buccaneers’ offensive possession.

R4 No. 1 Wilcox County 23, R6 No. 22 Trion 22 (OT)

Wilcox County (9-3) tied the game at 15-15 in the fourth quarter but missed the PAT to take the lead. Wilcox won it in overtime when the Patriots chose to go for two instead of tying the game with a PAT. Trion (10-2) trailed 9-0 at halftime before taking a 15-9 lead into the fourth quarter.

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R2 No. 3 Turner County 46, R6 No. 1 Bowdon 13

The last time Turner County made the four-hour drive from Ashburn to Bowdon was 50 years ago for the Class A finals won by Bowdon, 31-21. But No. 3 seed Turner County (6-6) exacted a bit of revenge and made a statement with 46-13 blowout of the Red Devils (10-2) to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2008.

R3 No. 1 Metter 33, R5 No. 2 Schley County 6

Metter (12-0) remained unbeaten by holding Schley’s (10-2) high-powered offense in check and then blew open a tight ballgame with 20-unanswered points in the fourth quarter to advance to the quarterfinals.

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R2 No. 2 Brooks County (8-2) at R8 No. 1 Washington-Wilkes (9-2) Brooks County (9-2) returned to the Elite 8 for the third-straight year with a 61-28 win over the Tigers. The Trojans blew out Washington-Wilkes (9-3) in last year’s quarterfinals, 47-7. Brooks is averaging 47.45 ppg this season.

R7 No. 2 Warren County 32, R1 No. 1 Pelham 7 Warren County (9-3) went north of 30 points for the fourth consecutive game and advanced to the state quarterfinals for the second time in the last three seasons with a blowout win over the Hornets (7-5).