GRENADA — Senior running back Dontae Gray topped the 200-yard mark with three touchdowns as the Heritage Academy football team beat Kirk Academy 46-20 in the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) season opener Friday night.
“Very pleased at how well it went,” Heritage Academy second-year head coach Sean Harrison said. “Even though we had a comfortable lead, we left the starters out there until there were about six minutes left in the game. We just have a lot of first-year starters and they really needed some reps.
“Offensively, we played well. We took control early. Our conditioning was good. We didn’t have a lot of players go down with cramps. Just thought we had some good mental toughness.”
Gray helped lead a rushing attack that eclipsed the 300-yard mark. Sophomore quarterback Carter Putt threw a touchdown to sophomore Jared Long and junior Moak Griffin.
“For his debut, Carter was solid,” Harrison said. “We asked him to make smart decisions and to not turn the ball over. He did both of those. Very pleased with his decision-making. He had some smart reads out of the option. Not turning the ball over is big time.
“We have some sophomores we are counting on. Our offensive line play will be good and will give our backs a chance. We just have to keep possession and execute.”
Heritage Academy scored on the game’s first four possessions to take a 26-0 lead. The Patriots led 34-14 at halftime.
On defense, junior Lex Rogers had two interceptions. Griffin led the way with 14 tackles, while sophomore Eli Acker had two sacks.
“We were a little slow at times getting to the right spot on defense, but that’s a first game,” Harrison said. “We just have to keep getting better each week. When you are young, that weekly improvement is important.”
Heritage Academy will play host to Manchester Academy on Friday night.
n Oak Hill Academy-Deer Creek School, ccd.: At Arcola, Oak Hill Academy held a 3-0 halftime lead when this MAIS season opener was called after a lengthy rain/lightning delay.
Lightning began at halftime and the game was called after a two-hour delay.
“Defense did really well,” Oak Hill Academy coach Chris Craven said. “I thought they pursued the ball well. It was an overall group effort on the defensive side of the ball. We rotated a lot of guys because we are still working on a set lineup.
“Offensively, we struggled running the ball. We have a lot of sophomores on that side of the ball. I thought our execution level was not that good. We may have played a little panicked. We made some simple mistakes. We can fix that. Overall, I was proud of the effort.
“We had a higher level of toughness than we did last year. We competed harder.”
Grayson Easterling kicked a 30-yard field goal for the Raiders.
“We didn’t have a jamboree,” Craven said, “so we had to work some of those first-game things out. We had simple mistakes. We had a lot of sophomores and our youth showed up. Basically, this became our preseason game.”
Oak Hill Academy will play host to Newton County Academy on Friday night.
n Forest 25, New Hope 3: At Forest, the Trojans scored first but it wasn’t enough in the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) season opener for both teams.
“We weren’t very good offensively,” New Hope coach Kris Pickle said. “We have to get better.”
Daniel Bradley kicked a 30-yard field goal for the Trojans.
Forest broke a 3-3 halftime tie by scoring on the first possession of the second quarter. The Bearcats added two more scores in the second half.
n Aberdeen 50, Bruce 12: At Aberdeen, the Bulldogs scored on their first three possessions and cruised in the MHSAA season opener for both teams.
Junior quarterback Fred Fields help spark the strong start. In the first quarter, Fields hit a 34-yard touchdown pass to Terrance Rowe and a 33-yard touchdown pass to Isiah McMillian. Dajoun Dobbs followed with a 3-yard run.
Aberdeen ran the lead to 36-6 at halftime on 31-yard run by Dobbs and 10-yard run by Brandon Williams.
“We have good speed and we have guys who can catch it and throw it on offense,” Aberdeen coach Eric Spann said. “We have three guys we have confidence in carrying the football. It was a good start on offense. We got a lot of players involved and were able to finish drives.”
Dobbs capped his three-touchdown night with a 14-yard run in the third quarter. Fields threw a 71-yard touchdown to McMillian in the fourth quarter.
Fields was 9 of 13 for 236 yards. He also ran for 53 yards. Dobbs had a game-high 66 rushing yards. McMillian had three receptions for 135 yards.
Jacoby Carruth led the defense with nine tackles and a fumble recovery.
“On defense, we had a lot guys step up,” Spann said. “I thought the young guys kept the focus up even though we had a good lead.”
Aberdeen will play host to Caledonia on Friday night.
n Hamilton 47, Coldwater 6: At Hamilton, the Lions dominated in their MHSAA season opener at home.
Hamilton scored on all six first-half possessions and led 41-0 at halftime.
Bryant Butler threw for two scores and added two rushing scores. Kaminski Bankhead caught touchdown passes of 28 and 32 yards from Butler. Butler scored on runs of 9 and 32 yards.
Bryson Butler added rushing scores of 1 and 5 yards. Zach Crawford had a 28-yard fumble return touchdown for the Lions.
Hamilton will play host to Nettleton on Friday night.
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