WAYNESBORO — The Heritage Academy football team earned back-to-back road wins Friday with a 35-7 victory against Wayne Academy in a Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) matchup.
“The starters on defense have not given up a touchdown in three games,” Heritage Academy coach Sean Harrison said. “We talked about the first three games and how important it would be to get through those unscathed. Two of the three were long road trips.
“We got through that part of the schedule. Now it’s time to concentrate on getting ready for district play and trying to win a state championship.
Heritage Academy (3-0) received another monster night from Kelvin “K.J.” Smith, who had 13 carries for 177 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Carter Putt was 8-for-15 for 106 yards and three touchdowns.
Moak Griffin, Lex Rogers, and Davis Fitch caught touchdown passes.
“Pleased offensively with what we have done,” Harrison said. “When you play on the road, you want to start fast. We have done that in each of the last two games. Got to play a lot of people. I like the chemistry of this team and how hard they are working as a group.”
n Houston 47, New Hope 14: At Houston, the Hilltoppers rushed for 305 yards as the Trojans dropped their third straight to start the season
Senior Bobby Townsend rushed for 132 yards and two touchdowns to lead Houston (2-1). The Hilltoppers led 29-7 at halftime.
For New Hope (0-3), Kobe Matthews scored two touchdowns.
“This team continues to improve,” New Hope coach Wade Tackett said. “The work ethic is good. We are just trying to get better each week.”
n Biggersville 49, West Lowndes 16: At Biggersville, back-to-back touchdowns in the final three minutes of the first half lifted the Tigers past the Panthers.
Thanks to that late burst, Biggersville (3-0) led 28-8 at halftime
For West Lowndes (0-3), Quay Sanders scored on a 1-yard run in the first half. In the second half, Melvin Crawford hit Ny’jhule Holloway on an 81-yard touchdown.
n Victory Christian 38, Hope Christian (Ala.) 20: At Columbus, Chris McDonald eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark, and Dallas Colom had two interception returns for touchdowns Friday to lead the Rams (2-0) in their non-league matchup.
McDonald had eight carries for 103 yards, including a long of 41 yards. He had a 14-yard touchdown run and a two-point conversion run.
Colom had a 95-yard interception return and an 85-yard interception return for scores.
Preston Kinard had 13 carries for 73 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown run. Kenny Collier had three catches for 111 yards. He had a 66-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Brandon Moore (9-for-17, 167 yards). Moore also had an 11-yard touchdown pass.
Jay Elmore had four catches for 49 yards. He also led the team with 10 tackles. McDonald added nine tackles, while Nadarion Higgins had nine tackles and four interceptions. The Eagles had six interceptions.
Victory Christian will open Christian Football Association (CFA) action at 7 p.m. Friday when it travels to Meridian to play Russell Christian Academy.
n Hatley 59, Hamilton 14: At Hamilton, the Lions dropped their second straight at home.
n Kemper Academy 44, Hebron Christian 6: At DeKalb, the Eagles fell in MAIS Eight-Man competition Friday night.
“We played our best game of the season,” Hebron Christian coach David Foster said. “We drove the ball deep a couple of times but couldn’t score. Defense shut their run game down. Most of their scoring came on long pass plays where we didn’t have the proper coverage.”
For the Eagles (0-3), Jon Lowe caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Braeden Triplett. Doug Loden had 80 yards rushing and 15 tackles, while Lowe had seven catches for 94 yards.
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