BY NOAH GRIFFITH
FOR THE OBSERVER
AUBURN — The Lee-Scott Academy Warriors (3A) thrived in the clutch moments to defeat the Loachapoka Indians (2A) on Thursday night at Judd Scott Field, 31-21.
Both offenses exchanged explosive plays throughout the game, but two key stops on 4th-and-goal by Lee-Scott at the end of each half gave the Warriors the advantage. After the latter stop resulted in a turnover on downs for the Indians, Lee-Scott marched 96 yards down the field and got a decisive touchdown run by quarterback Max Hammer at the end of the contest.
That score by the senior QB sealed the game, as Lee-Scott improved to 2-0 for the second year in a row to begin its AHSAA tenure. Loachapoka fell to 1-1.
“A character builder is exactly what that was,” said Lee-Scott head coach Buster Daniel. “That was a war right there, and our boys will learn from it.”
The score was even at 14 going to halftime, and the teams traded blows. Hammer got the party started with a two-yard TD scamper in the first quarter, but then Loachapoka senior Travis Andrews introduced himself, as he did many times throughout the night, by breaking away for a 50-plus yard end around to make it 7-7.
On the very next drive, Andrews (No. 0) made his presence felt on defense. The defensive back picked off a Hammer pass and used his return skills to set up the offense at the Lee-Scott 3-yard line.
But Lee-Scott’s defense stood strong for the first of three times on the night. It jumped on a fumble on the goal line to give the Warriors the ball and, more importantly, keep Loachapoka out of the end zone.
Just when Lee-Scott thought it had momentum, though, the Indians forced a three-and-out and abruptly marched down the field. After a 38-yard run by senior QB KJ Carter, junior running back Lareaco Echols punched it in from two yards out to take a 14-7 lead.
As it did many times throughout the night, Lee-Scott kept its composure and punched back. Just two plays later, junior receiver Preston Huguley (No. 3) took a short pass from Hammer 56 yards to the house to even things up, 14-14, with 7:09 remaining in the first half.
Loachapoka threatened to take the lead at the end of the half, but that’s when the Warrior defense made its first key goal-line stand.
Carter and Andrews drove down inside the 10-yard line, and it came down to a 4th-and-goal from 10 yards out. The offense stayed on the field, and Carter rolled out to his left and delivered a low pass for Andrews that was broken up by junior Griffin Gaston. Lee-Scott ran out the clock to go to the half after taking over possession.
“The goal is to bend, don’t break. That’s what we did,” Daniel said. “We kept fighting, kept fighting and got a break… Just proud of my defense overall.”
Lee-Scott’s break came quickly in the second half. A minute into the third quarter, junior RB Brooks Zachry (No. 30) prolonged his breakout season with a 55-yard TD run to put the Warriors ahead, 21-14. He rushed for 179 yards in week one and had another 100-yard rushing game versus Loachapoka.
Instead of allowing Loachapoka to answer, however, Lee-Scott began to separate itself. Senior safety Easton Gregory got the Warriors’ second turnover of the game, intercepting a Carter pass and taking it back to the Loachapoka 9-yard line. Despite getting knocked back 11 yards, kicker Thomas Carmichael nailed a 37-yard field goal to make it 24-14.
The dual-threat ability of Carter made things interesting on the next drive, but mistakes and missed opportunities in the fourth quarter kept the Indians from completing a comeback.
First, Loachapoka threatened to start the fourth quarter after a 30-yard run by Carter to the Warriors’ 11-yard line. However, its second fumble in the red zone gave the ball back to Lee-Scott. Even then, the Indians forced a three-and-out and got the ball back in enemy territory, but that’s when the offense got stonewalled for the final time.
With the clock ticking under seven minutes in the fourth quarter, Carter led the Indians inside the 10-yard line yet again. When the Lee-Scott defense forced a fourth down from the 4-yard line, Loachapoka sent out its kicker to try to tie things up. But after a time out, the offense opted to go for the win.
Needing four yards for the lead with the clock nearing 6:00 in the game, Carter took the snap and rolled to his left again. This time, he found his tight end wide open in the end zone and lobbed him the ball. Reaching up, Loachapoka’s sophomore tight end had the winning ball in his hands, but it bounced up and fell to the turf, resulting in a turnover on downs.
“Just too many mistakes. Four turnovers against a team like Lee-Scott, you’re going to lose every time,” said Loachapoka head coach Branden Hall. “Think we played hard, just too many miscues.”
This time, the Lee-Scott offense exploded after the clutch defensive stand to lock up the win. Hammer started by lowering his helmet for a punishing third down conversion to its own 29-yard line, and he capped off the four-minute, 96-yard drive with a 21-yard QB read. That gave the Warriors a 31-21 lead with 2:04 remaining in the contest. It also forced Hall to use all of Loachapoka’s timeouts.
A quick Loachapoka turnover on downs was the game’s resolution — Lee-Scott only needed to take a knee after that before celebrating a gutsy win.
“Our kids have to understand: we’re a good team, and we can play in this league,” Daniel said. “We belong in 3A with public schools. That’s what I hope they take away.”
With the win, Lee-Scott takes a 2-0 record into region play. It begins play in 3A Region 4 next week with a home match with Childersburg, who is 0-2 after a loss to Talladega.
On the other hand, Loachapoka will look to rebound at home next week, as it begins region play versus Lanett. Lanett is 1-1 after beating Beulah on Friday, 37-7.
Lee-Scott Academy hosts Loachapoka, wins 31-21
