From Special Reports
MERIDIAN – Heritage Academy saw its season-opening three-game winning streak come to an end with a 42-41 loss at Lamar School in Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) football action Friday night.
Heritage Academy (3-1) held a 41-28 lead only to see the regining Class AAAA, Division II state champions score twice in the final five minutes to snag the victory.
“Proud of the effort,” Heritage Academy coach Sean Harrison said. “We sustained some injuries early in the game and that threw off our game plan on defense. Lamar again has a great team. They are well-coached and disciplined. Credit to them for rallying late in the game.”
For the Patriots, Carter Putt was 11 of 19 passing for 311 yards and four touchdowns with an interception. Hyde Banks had two touchdowns catches (35 and 20 yards), while Moak Griffin (65 yards) and Jared Long (40 yards) had the others.
Long had three catches for 102 yards, while Griffin had four catches for 98 yards and Banks had three catches for 87 yards.
On the ground, Kelvin “KJ” Smith ran 22 times for 98 yards, with touchdown runs of 3 and 25 yards.
“Lot of good teaching moments on the field,” Harrison said. “We did a lot of things well. Just need to get ready now for Pillow.”
The teams were tied at 21 at halftime.
Starkville Academy 51, East Webster 0: At Maben, the MAIS-member Volunteers moved to 4-0 with their second shutout against a Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) opponent.
Defense was a donating theme throughout.
“Our defensive effort was great,” Starkville Academy coach Chase Nicholson said. “We forced turnovers and controlled field position. On offense, we missed a few wide-open passes and had some penalties. We will need to get better in those areas.”
A safety and interception return touchdown by Howell Archer helped the Volunteers to a 12-0 lead. A blocked punt would lead to another score and the lead would move to 22-0 at halftime.
In the second half, Sam Clark had another pick-six, the Volunteers recovered a fumble in the end for another score and also got another safety.
Deer Creek School 30, Columbus Christian 0: At Arcola, the Rams fell to 1-3 with this shutout loss in MAIS Class A play.
Winona Christian 36, Oak Hill Academy 10: At Winona, the Raiders fell in their MAIS Class AA, District 1 opener. The contest was called in the fourth quarter after an injury to Oak Hill Academy’s Ethan Bryan.
According to the OHA Facebook page, Ethan Bryan suffered a concussion during the game but neck scans came back clear Saturday.
Calhoun Academy 42, Hebron Christian 12: At Calhoun City, the Eagles fell on the road in MAIS Eight-man competition.
For Hebron Christian (0-4), Doug Loden had a 75-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and caught a 78-yard touchdown pass from Braiden Triplett.
Choctaw County 20, Caledonia 6: At Ackerman, the Confederates fell on the road against one of the favorites in MHSAA Class 3A North State.
Caledonia (1-2) trailed 7-6 at halftime. The Confederates’ touchdown came on a 68-yard run by Jedarius Gore.
In the second half, Choctaw County (3-1) puts its Homecoming win away with a 14-yard run by Tylan Carter and 43-yard run by Kaleb Nichols. Carter finished with two rushing scores.
Leake County 40, West Lowndes 38: At Walnut Grove, the Panthers (0-4) were on the short end of a shoot out in their MHSAA Class 1A, Region 3 opener.
Nanih Waiya 46, Hamilton 0: At Hamilton, the Lions slipped to 1-3 after falling in their MHSAA Class 1A, Region 3 opener at home.
Pontotoc 48, Aberdeen 8: At Aberdeen, the Bulldogs dropped their second straight with this MHSAA non-region loss at home.
For Aberdeen, Fred Fields scored on a 6-yard run in the fourth quarter to break up the shutout.
Russell Christian 52, Victory Christian 0: At Meridian, The Eagles trailed 33-0 at halftime Friday in dropping their Christian Football Association (CFA) opener.
Brandon Moore was 9-for-13 for 42 yards and two interceptions. Preston Kinard had 10 carries for 30 yards. Jay Elmore had two catches for 37 yards. Elmore also had a team-high nine tackles.
Victory Christian will play host to Tabernacle in another CFA game Friday in Columbus.
Pickens Academy 51, Meadowview Christian 8: At Selma, Alabama, Jon Wesley Rye had nine carries for 123 yards and two touchdowns Friday night to lead the Pirates (1-3) in Alabama Independent School Association (AISA) play.
Braden Davidson had nine tackles and a fumble recovery for a touchdown. William Parker had a fumble recovery for a touchdown.
Aliceville 32, Tarrant 6: At Aliceville, Alabama, Zavien Wilkins had 17 carries for 114 yards and a touchdown to lead the Yellow Jackets (1-1) in Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) action.
Matthew Clark scored on a 67-yard run. He also caught a 29-yard touchdown pass from Kavon McGraw.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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