Lowndes turned the Winnersville Classic into a rout for the ages.
The Vikings took out their frustrations of losing last week by pounding archrival Valdosta 57-15 on Friday.
Lowndes set a record for scoring the most points against Valdosta and tied another one for largest margin of victory by either team in the series, which dates to the 1968 season. Lowndes has won the past six meetings.
"We pushed them all week, and they responded. ... I think we found out what we were made out of [Friday]," Lowndes coach Randy McPherson told the Valdosta Daily-Times. The newspaper said Valdosta coach Rick Tomberlin declined to comment after the game.
Lowndes, ranked No. 4 in Class AAAAA, suffered its first loss of the season last week against Northside-Warner Robins.
Close calls
# Peach County, ranked No. 2 in Class AAA, jumped to a 21-point lead and held on for a 24-13 win over Cairo, the defending state champions. Peach defensive back Labrandon Johnson returned an interception 51 yards for what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown. "We thought we were going to come out and put the hammer down, but that didn't seem to happen. ... We have to do a better job of closing games out in the second half," Peach County coach Chad Campbell told the Macon Telegraph.
# Westside-Macon, No. 1 in AAAA, led by only 10 points at halftime but ended up with a 37-7 win over Harris County. Westside's defense has held the opponent to a touchdown or less in six of seven wins. "We told the kids at halftime that they weren't playing with enough intensity and energy,” Westside first-year coach Sheddrick Risper told the Telegraph.
Last-minute fireworks
Hardaway's game against Jones County was delayed for 30 minutes in the second quarter because of lightning. There were also fireworks at the finish. Jones County's Zack Suarez kicking a 30-yard field goal for a 25-22 lead with 31 seconds left. However, Hardaway answered with Marcus Smith's 35-yard touchdown pass to Austin Scott for the dramatic 29-25 win.
"It's heartbreaking -- they simply made a great play at the end," Jones County coach Dwight Jones told the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.
Around the state
# Flowery Branch (No. 8 in Class AAA) saw a potential game-tying field goal sail wide right in the final seconds of the 37-34 loss to North Hall. Peyton Wilhoite of the Rams had one of the state's best all-around efforts for North Hall: He rushed for 152 yards and two touchdowns on offense, and registered 19 tackles on defense, according to the Gainesville Times. Flowery Branch quarterback Connor Shaw, who has committed to South Carolina, completed 22 of 34 passes for 296 yards and four touchdowns.
# If you were a few minutes late to watch No. 1 Gainesville, then you missed most of the highlights. The Red Elephants scored four touchdowns in the first four minutes of the 63-0 win over East Hall. Tai-ler Jones, who committed to Stanford over Georgia and Notre Dame, had a 17-yard catch and 20-yard run for touchdowns. "We preach to them all the time that if they end up being as good as they want to be, then they will continue to come out fast and then get some of the younger guys some playing time," Gainesville coach Bruce Miller told the Times.
# Oconee County has struggled without the services of quarterback Zach Mettenberger, who is a freshman at Georgia. He led the Warriors to back-to-back appearances in the state playoffs. This year, Oconee will need a late rally in region play to make it three straight appearances in the postseason. The Warriors won their first game on Friday, defeating Stephens County 27-21. Oconee kicker Andrew Kowalski had two field goals and three extra points, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.
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