Patriots second consecutive win

Marshall Academy went into Friday night football hungry for another win. The Patriots hosted South Pontotoc High School making it their last game before conference play.

Both teams traded first quarter scores. Due to the defensive effort from both squads, the Cougars took a 67 lead in the half.

The Patriots offense came alive in the second half scoring 20 points, defeating South Pontotoc with a final score of 26-21.

“It was a huge win for our program and it will definitely give us some momentum for district play,” Coach Ben Durham said.

Durham said he was really impressed with the defense. “We stopped them basically all night. Even on the first drive we had penalties that kept them moving. But we had several key defenders step

up.”

Durham said that Hayes Henry sealed the deal with a 92 yard interception return.

“Henry’s stats for the night were nine carries for 116yards, seven tackles, one interception and a 92-yard touchdown,” Durham said.

“On the first drive we went right down and scored. So, I felt pretty confident, however the players had a different plan,” Durham said. “We just made so many mistakes. If we can ever get out of our own way we will be dangerous. We were able to run it all over them but couldn’t execute when we got inside the 20.

“Two touchdowns were called back for holding, two fumbles and a false start from the one. Honestly we could have easily scored three more touchdowns,” Durham said.

The Patriots move on to conference play. They hit the road for a showdown with North Delta Green Wave Friday, September 16.