The Stephenson Jaguars put on a dominating defensive show on the way to upsetting the previously undefeated Miller Grove Wolverines to open the DCSD Middle School Trail to the Title Playoffs on a rainy day at Avondale Stadium last Saturday.
The Jaguar (5-2) defense combined for 12 sacks and forced three turnovers (2 interceptions, 1 fumble) while not allowing a first down to the Wolverines (6-1).
Defensive tackled Marvon Harmon, defensive end Jeremiah Bernard, middle linebacker Ashton Wiley and Will linebacker BJ Martin had three sacks each in the game. Harmon added a fumble recovery and free safety Evante Fears had two interceptions.
Quarterback Trent Fields scored on two 25-yard runs to lead the Jaguar offense. Trevion McDowell scored a two-point conversion for Stephenson.
Stephenson, which has five Trail to the Title championships and is 19-9 all-time in the playoffs, moved into the semifinals for the 10th season and fifth in six seasons.
Stephenson moves into the semifinal round of the Trail to the Title Playoffs to take on Cedar Grove (7-0) which defeated Sequoyah 30-0 in the first round of play. The two will play at 10:30 am at Godfrey Stadium on Saturday in the semifinals.
Cedar Grove 30, Sequoyah 0
Cedar Grove got off to a slow start against first-time playoff entry Sequoyah (2-5) before hitting some big plays on the way to a 30-0 victory.
Damarcus Smith got things moving with a 60-yard touchdown run and later added an eight-yard run. Boden Walker had a 70-yard touchdown run and a thrilling kickoff return. Lamaze Williams added an exciting 55-yard touchdown run of his own.’
Cedar Grove improved to 12-11 in the playoffs and reached the semifinals for the 10th time and second consecutive trip.
Champion 46, Salem 16
The undefeated Champion Chargers scored on their first offensive play of the game and were off and running to a 46-16 win over the Salem Lions on Saturday at North DeKalb Stadium.
A fumble on that first play turned to gold as Champion’s Cevyn Smith scooped up his teammate’s drop and raced to the end zone for the opening score of the game.
John Cineas would score three times and Channing Henderson reached the end zone twice for the Chargers.
Champion’s defense forced four turnovers in the game.
The win was Champion’s first playoff victory in four trips and advanced the Chargers (7-0) to the semifinals for the first time in program history.
Henderson 12, Bethune 0
A strong defensive performance propelled the Henderson Cougars to a 12-0 win over defending Trail to the Title champions Bethune Lions at North DeKalb Stadium on Saturday.
It was the Cougars (7-0) fifth shutout of the season and moved them into the semifinal for the second consecutive season. Bethune played tough defensively as well holding the Cougar offense that came into the game averaging 48.8 points/game to just 12 points in the loss.
Henderson improved to 2-6 in the playoffs with both wins coming in the past two seasons.
Henderson and Champion put their undefeated seasons on the line on Saturday at 12:00 pm as they face off for a spot in the championship game at Godfrey Stadium. It would be either team’s first championship game appearance.
SATURDAY, OCT. 19 – FIRST ROUND RESULTS
AVONDALE STADIUM
GAME 1: STEPHENSON (5-2) 14, MILLER GROVE (6-1) 0
GAME 2: CEDAR GROVE (7-0) 30, SEQUOYAH (2-5) 0
NORTH DEKALB STADIUM
GAME 3: HENDERSON (7-0) 12, BETHUNE (3-4) 0
GAME 4: CHAMPION (7-0) 46, SALEM (4-3) 16
SATURDAY, OCT. 26 – SEMIFINALS
GODFREY STADIUM
GAME 5: CEDAR GROVE (7-0) VS. STEPHENSON (5-2), 10:30 AM
GAME 6: CHAMPION (7-0) VS. HENDERSON (7-0), 12:00 PM
SATURDAY, NOV. 2 – CHAMPIONSHIP
ADAMS STADIUM
GAME 7: GAME 5 WINNER VS. GAME 6 WINNER, 11:00 AM