Wednesday, December 6, 2000
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Wednesday, December 6, 2000 |
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Starr's Mill survives, heads to semifinals at The Dome By MICHAEL BOYLAN Three local high school football teams entered the state quarterfinals last Friday night and one will be in the state semifinals this Friday. Starr's Mill defeated Brookwood 31-28, while East Coweta lost to Parkview 31-10 and Northgate lost to Americus, 28-14. The Starr's Mill Panthers (13-0) traveled to Snellville last Friday to take on the Brookwood Broncos in a televised game (AT&T Broadband Channel 33). Both teams battled back and forth during the entire game but the Panthers were the ones to emerge victorious. Reuben Houston scored the first touchdown for Starr's Mill, scoring off a 68-yard reception. He finished the evening with 45 yards rushing and 109 yards receiving. Arlando Hinton scored the second touchdown with a one-yard run. Quarterback Brad McClaren scored the Panthers' third touchdown with a one-yard run of his own and Jason Laney scored the go ahead touchdown with another one yard run. Laney finished the evening with 99 yards rushing. Starr's Mill led 28-21 late in the fourth quarter. The Panthers sealed the win with a 34-yard field goal from kicker Jon Vickers. Brookwood wasn't done yet though. The Broncos stormed down the field and scored, making the game 31-28 with minimal time left. Starr's Mill recovered the on-side kick, held on to the ball and won. The Panthers will now advance to the Georgia Dome this Friday night to take on the 10th ranked Harrison Hoyas. Kickoff is scheduled for 9 p.m. Harrison (11-2) lost its first two games of the season. The Hoyas lost to Parkview 8-7 and then lost to Stephenson 28-14. Since then, they have won 11 games in a row. They did not allow over 14 points until last week's 24-17 win over Mt. Zion, Jonesboro. In the first two rounds of the playoffs, they have defeated Lassiter 28-6 and Collins Hill 21-14. The Hoyas were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs last season. In the other two football games, East Coweta and Northgate were victims of turnovers. The Indians had five second half turnovers that helped Parkview break a 10-10 tie, while the Vikings had five turnovers in the game that helped Americus build a 28-0 lead. East Coweta's points came from a Matt Polizzi field goal and a 13-yard touchdown reception from Alex Freeman. The Indians recorded 93 second half rushing yards, but could not stop the charged-up Parkview squad. Northgate got solid performances from Kenny Strozier, who ran for 165 yards and two touchdowns, and quarterback Mitch Stewart threw for 131 yards. Both teams had successful seasons and played hard for every minute of every game. They should be commended. |
