MCCOMB — Somewhat banged up with injuries, the Brookhaven Academy Cougars took their show on the road for the third time in four weeks traveling due south on Interstate 55 to face the Parklane Academy Pioneers. As Brookhaven Academy coach Tripp McCarty predicted, both teams gutted it out for four solid quarters, with Parklane outlasting BA 20-14 Friday night in a nail-biter.

     Minus junior tailback Landon Nettles and senior linebacker Taylor Rutland, both sidelined recovering from nagging injuries sustained in last week’s game at Simpson Academy, senior quarterback Gage Posey knew the lion’s share of the Brookhaven Academy offense would rest with him and his receiving corps.

     Wanting to strike first, BA won the coin toss and took the ball to start the game.  A 29-yard kickoff return by Matthew Evans put the Cougars in great position early.       On their first offensive play Posey hit wide receiver Seth Rushing on a quick slant for six yards but a hard hit by a trio of Parklane defenders popped the ball out which the Pioneers quickly recovered in BA territory.  Three plays later senior Parklane tailback Joseph Clark took the pitch around left end for 25 yards and the first touchdown of the game.  Zack McDaniel added the PAT to give the Pioneers a 7-0 lead at the 11:06 mark of the first quarter.

     BA was forced to punt after a quick three and out on their next possession and turned to their defense to make a play and not let the game get away early.  Rising to the occasion, The BA front line made a jarring hit in the Pioneer backfield shaking the ball lose and defensive end Garrett Pace recovered the fumble at the Parklane 22.

       The Cougars quickly drove the ball down to the Parklane 5-yard line where Posey hit Evans on a pass play one step deep into the end zone for the touchdown.  Kevin Nettles added the PAT, knotting the game up at 7-7 at the 8:55 mark of the first quarter.

     BA’s defense would again stiffen, forcing Parklane to punt back to the Cougars who would take over on offense at their own 15 with 5:24 remaining in the first quarter.  Relying primarily on the pass to offset Parklane’s talented defensive run stoppers, Posey  marched the Cougars down the field, completing passes to four different receivers during the drive.

       BA would be faced with a fourth down on the Parklane 1-yard line as time expired in the first quarter.  Without hesitation, Coach McCarty called on his senior signal caller and Posey took it off left tackle for the touchdown.  Nettles added the PAT to give the Cougars a 14-7 lead with 11:58 showing in the second quarter.

     Both teams traded punts and interceptions, one by Tanner Parvin for BA and one by Walt Aldridge for Parklane as the minutes ticked down in the first half.

       Parklane  mounted a late drive, pushing the ball inside the Brookhaven 10- yard line with under a minute to play in the first half.  With no timeouts and 2 running plays, the Pioneers were forced to quickly rush their field goal unit onto the field with less than 10 seconds left in the half.  Getting the snap off with just :02 showing on the clock, Pioneer holder Zach Stutzman mishandled the exchange and was forced to retreat, rolling wide to his right and then tossing a floater over the BA defenders to an open Dan Gill along the back line of the end zone for the first half-ending touchdown.  McDaniel added the PAT and the teams went to their locker rooms tied up at 14. 

     The Cougars forced a Parklane punt on their first possession of the second half and took over at their own 44-yard line four minutes into the third quarter.   BA struck quickly, with Posey hitting Seth Rushing on a 23 yard pass play for a first down at the Pioneer 22 yard line.

       Unable to convert a subsequent third down play, the Cougars were force to attempt a 31 yard field goal that sailed inches outside the left upright with 6:20 left to play in the third.

 

Parklane pushed into Cougar territory but their drive stalled  at the BA 11-yard line.  Coach Mike Powell called on his junior placekicker Zack McDaniel who split the uprights with a 28-yard field goal to give the Pioneers a 17-14 lead with 2:45 left to play in the third quarter.

     With the Cougars on the move, Stutzman stepped in front of a Posey pass and returned the pick for an apparent 63-yard touchdown. However, a block in the back penalty negated the TD but gave Parklane the ball at the BA 41.  The Pioneers were drive deep into Cougar territory but again the BA defense arose. Parklane settled for McDaniel’s 20yard field goal and a 20-14 lead with 9:45 left to play.

      BA would get the ball back on their 26-yard line with 5:14 to play.  Posey engineered a drive with a 17-yard pass to Ross Foreman to convert a third down  and then an 18-yard pass to Evans on a third and 22 to set up a crucial fourth down and four yards to go at the Parklane 24 with 2:58 left in the contest.

       The Cougars used their final timeout to talk things over and set up their next play.  Posey took the shotgun snap, rolled quickly to his left and threw a bullet that bounced off the shoulder pad of his would-be receiver and fell to the turf in the west end zone.

       A collective sigh of relief could be heard on the Pioneer sideline amidst shouts of celebration.

     Sweat soaked and drained but still optimistic, Coach McCarty said, “I am proud of the way we came out and played tonight.   We were forced to change our approach up a bit due to some injuries and also due to how well we knew Parklane played the run.

     “Our guys gave us a shot to win it at the end.”  McCarty continued, “Sure we would like to be 4 and 0. And with a play here and a play there that’s where we would be.

       “But our guys understand and recognize where we are and where we want to be in late October going into November.  They know and believe playing these tough opponents like Parklane early in the season is going to make us a better football team down the road.”

     Like the game itself, the final statistics were neck and neck.  Brookhaven Academy had 253 total yards of offense and Parklane ended the game with 241 total yards.  Brady Lea led the Pioneers with 127 yards passing and 88 yards on the ground.

       The Cougars were led by Gage Posey who had 196 yards through the air and a touchdown.  Posey also had one rushing TD to his credit.

     Leading Receivers for the Cougars were Ross Foreman with six catches for 72 yards, Matthew Evans had five catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. Seth Rushing also had 5 catches totaling 48 yards for the Cougars.

     Colby Culbertson led the defense effort for BA with 12 tackles, Garrett Pace added 7 tackles and a fumble recovery. Preston Rawls had 6 1/2 tackles and defensive lineman Tramel Shed chipped in five stops for the Cougars.

      The Cougars are back at home Friday to face the Wayne Academy Jaguars in a 7 p.m. start on the campus of Brookhaven Academy and R. M. “Red” Stuard Field.