This story was published on Friday night on AJC.com:
St. Pius 10, Dunwoody 7: A 44-yard field goal and stifling second-half defense earned St. Pius its first region title and undefeated regular season since the late 1960s with a 10-7 win over Dunwoody
After a 7-7 halftime tie, St. Pius kicker Joey Gargiulo made the game-deciding field goal with 4:20 left in the third quarter. The Golden Lions’ defense allowed Dunwoody 23 yards in the second half, with three sacks of Wildcats’ quarterback Justin King in the fourth quarter. St. Pius senior running back Cole Moon rushed for 119 yards on 23 carries and scored a first-quarter touchdown, bringing his regular-season totals to 1,037 yards and 15 touchdowns. Dunwoody’s King caught a 37-yard pass on the Wildcats’ opening drive and also scored on a 33-yard run. St. Pius finished the regular season 10-0 overall, 7-0 in Region 5-AAA, while Dunwoody (6-4, 5-2) earned the region’s No. 2 seed. Each team hosts a playoff game next weekend. – BAILEY WEBB
Norcross 25, Collins Hill 21: Delino DeShields rushed for 89 yards and scored two late touchdowns as Norcross rallied for a thrilling victory over Collins Hill.
After Collins Hill opened with a 3-yard touchdown run by Charles Perkins, Geremy Davis of Norcross made a leaping 27-yard touchdown reception to tie the game 7-7 in the second quarter. Perkins, who rushed for 117 yards and three touchdowns, ran 3 yards for his second touchdown and a 14-7 Eagles lead just before half. Following a 23-yard field goal by Norcross’ Connor Hawk, Perkins scored his third touchdown on a 2-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter to stretch the Collins Hill lead to 21-10. DeShields then burst 51 yards for a touchdown with 9:26 remaining, cutting the lead to 21-18 following the two-point conversion. DeShields scored his final touchdown on a 5-yard run to give Norcross their first lead of the night 25-21 with 5:31 remaining. Norcross’ Dezman Cage recovered a Collins Hill fumble at the Norcross 21-yard line with two minutes left to preserve the victory. – DAVID BROCK
Chapel Hill 21, Westlake 14 (OT): The Panthers (7-3, 6-3) grabbed the final Region 4-AAAAA playoff spot with an overtime road win, while the Lions (7-3, 7-2) finished the regular season as the region runner-up. The Panthers’ Johnathan Parks scored from a yard out on the first overtime possession for the winning score. Westlake’s attempt to force a second overtime ended when Arthur McDowell was stopped a yard short on fourth down. Earlier, McDowell hit Milton Artis on a 16-yard touchdown pass with 34 seconds left, then the quarterback ran in the two-point conversion to send the game into overtime. – MONROE ROARK
Kell 45, Milton 21: After beginning the season 0-4, Kell won its last six games to earn a playoff berth, rolling to a win at Milton behind 254 yards rushing and four touchdowns from Brian Randolph.
The Longhorns finished 6-3 in Region 6-AAAAA (6-4 overall) to get a third seed in the playoffs, winning decisively after trailing 7-0 in the first quarter. Randolph caught a 21-yard pass from Austin Petrik to tie the game, and broke loose for 58 yards to the Milton 2 to set up his first rushing touchdown, giving the Longhorns a 21-7 lead. Randolph scored on runs of 43 and 5 yards in the fourth quarter to complete the Kell scoring, with the Longhorns taking the lead for good on a 56-yard punt return by Jordan Chambers in the second quarter. Zach Wade recovered a Milton fumble in the end zone to make it 31-14 late in the third period. Wesley Gaston rushed for 184 yards and a touchdown for the Eagles (4-5, 4-6), with Wil Perry passing 26 yards to A.J. Canara for one score and rushing 2 yards for another. The Eagles trailed 31-21 late in the third quarter and narrowly missed recovering an onsides kick, but Randolph’s 43-yard run three plays clinched the win for the Longhorns. – MIKE BLUM
Woodward Academy 28, Woodland-Stockbridge 7: In a game with playoff seeding implications, Woodward (7-3, 6-2), led by a big game from running back Juwan Thompson, defeated Woodland and captured Region 4-AAA’s second seed for next week’s playoffs. Thompson rushed for 200 yards and three touchdowns on 28 carries, most of the damage coming in the second half, as the War Eagles stretched a 14-7 halftime advantage into a comfortable second-half lead. After rushing for 65 yards and a touchdown in the first half, Thompson piled up the yards after intermission, scoring on touchdown runs of 39 and 60 yards on back-to-back possessions in the third quarter. Woodland (7-3, 6-2) will enter the playoffs as the third seed from Region 4-AAA. – MICHAEL PADEN
Apalachee 37, Salem 14: Christian Hoard ran for two touchdowns, while John Ansley had one scoring run and a reception for another score as Apalachee completed its first undefeated regular season.
Gary Hunt got the Wildcats (10-0) on the board with a 39-yard field goal midway through the first quarter, then Hoard scored on a 2-yard run on the second play of the second quarter. After Salem’s Jasijah Smith scored on a 7-yard run, Hoard gave Apalachee a 17-7 halftime lead with a 5-yard run with six seconds left in the half. Ansley scored on a 35-yard run with 7:55 left in the third, then John Lee added a 31-yard touchdown on the Wildcats’ next possession. Ansley hauled in a 15-yard TD catch with 11:13 left in the fourth quarter. Lee finished with 132 yards on nine carries, while Ansley added nine carries for 69 yards. Salem (6-4) was eliminated from playoff contention when Rockdale County (6-4) edged Monroe Area (0-10) 18-15, also Friday. – STEVE SHELNUTT
Southwest DeKalb 27, Stone Mountain 14: Marques Dixon scored two second-half touchdowns and Southwest DeKalb rallied for a win over Stone Mountain.
The Panthers (9-1, 9-0 6-AAAA) rushed for 201 yards in the second half, including 96 yards on five carries by Dixon. Dixon’s first carry came on Southwest DeKalb’s first play in the fourth quarter, and was good for a 53-yard score and a 21-14 lead with 9:53 to play. Dixon then closed out the scoring with an 8-yard run with 44.3 seconds remaining. The Panthers took their first lead of the game when Preston McCarthy kicked a 34-yard field goal for a 15-14 advantage with 1:56 left in the third quarter.
Southwest DeKalb managed just 45 yards of offense in the second half, and had an interception returned for a touchdown. Tamarick Johnson returned the errant pass 40 yards for a 7-0 Pirates’ lead with 5:58 left in the first quarter. Stone Mountain (1-9, 0-9) scored its other touchdown on a 1-yard run by Jhyree Harris midway through the second quarter. – BRYAN FAZIO
Westminster 35, Blessed Trinity 7: Ralph David Abernathy rushed 19 times for 177 yards and three touchdowns as the host Wildcats cruised into the postseason with a convincing win. Abernathy scored on runs of 34, 32 and 4 yards in the first 14 minutes and Walter Ramsey returned an interception 21 yards for a touchdown late in the first quarter to give Westminster (7-3, 6-1 Region 6-AA) a 28-7 lead at intermission. The Titans (5-5, 2-5) parlayed the Wildcats’ lone turnover – a fumble midway through the second quarter – into a touchdown when quarterback Chris Lewis connected with Sam Farmer on a 37-yard score on third-and-12. John Egan capped off a 72-yard Westminster drive with a 5-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. – DAVE PAUL
Grady 27, Cedar Grove 20: Marcus Caffey rushed for 98 yards on 16 carries as Grady clinched a playoff berth. Grady led 20-0 midway through the second quarter. However, with the help of Grady turnovers, Cedar Grove drew even at 20-20 at the end of the third quarter.
The Knights closed it with Brandon Proctor’s 5-yard TD reception on fourth-and-goal. – RORY SHARROCK
Stephenson 44, Douglass 6: Raymond Sanders scored three touchdowns, two on long runs, and Jordan Tarver threw a pair of touchdown passes as Stephenson defeated Douglass at Hallford Stadium. Stephenson completed its first 10-0 regular season since 2002. Sanders’ touchdowns covered 4, 49 and 45 yards. Douglass finished 1-9. – TODD HOLCOMB
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