John Coleman looks for a gap Friday vs. Andrew Jackson. (Photo/Martha Ladd)
WINNSBORO – Richard Winn came into senior night looking to end their losing streak and to better position themselves for the upcoming SCISA 8-Man playoffs. Defeating the undefeated Confederates from Andrew Jackson would be the spark needed to make a run to repeat as champs. But Andrew Jackson made sure to end those hopes as they escaped a hard fought battle 22-21 to remain undefeated.
Richard Winn drew blood first, scoring the opening points of game and converting the 2-point conversion, giving them an 8-0 lead early in the first.
Andrew Jackson never backed down from the hard hitting Eagle defense using quarterback Joseph Stansfield to guide their strong ground game. Stansfield converted their first touchdown of the game on the ground but failed on the 2-point conversion, leaving the Eagles with an 8-6 lead. Neither defense let their intensity leave as both offenses struggled to gain any ground against one another the rest of the first half as the Eagles held the Confederates to a season-low 6 points going into the break.
Andrew Jackson started the second half punching Richard Winn in the mouth with the running game. Missed tackles by the Eagles gave Stansfield the opportunities he needed to drive down the field. Andrew Jackson took the lead after a short run by their running back Christian Lee to give them a 14-8 edge.
The Confederates pooched the kickoff, recovering the ball and giving them another possession to increase their lead over the Eagles. Andrew Jackson scored points off the Richard Winn blunder with a touchdown run by Stansfield to gain a 22-8 lead after another successful 2-point conversion.
“We felt very good about our efforts against a very good A.J. team,” RWA head coach Dan Dickerson said. “If we could have gotten our defense off the field in the third it could have been different.”
Andrew Jackson tried again to surprise the Eagles with a short kickoff, but Bryant Carvalho scooped the pooch kick and ran the kickoff for a touchdown to cut the Confederates’ lead to 22-15.
With the hour growing late the Eagle defense got a big stop, when Webb Yonge intercepted a Stansfield pass. With time running out, Eagle quarterback Gunnar Hensley led a great drive into the red zone and John Coleman scored on a short touchdown run cutting Andrew Jackson’s lead to 22-21. The Eagles’ rally fell short, however, as Hensley’s pass fell short on the 2-point conversion and Andrew Jackson escaped with a 22-21 victory.
The loss put the Eagles’ collective backs against the playoff wall, making Monday’s make-up game against Carolina Academy essentially a play-in game.
Richard Winn pulled out the victory, 31-16, locking up the fourth seed in the playoffs. They will travel to Mt. Pleasant Friday for a first-round game against Coastal Christian Prep. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.
AJ: 6-0-16-0 – 22
RW: 8-0-7-6 – 21
