STEENS — The Columbus Christian Academy football team made history Friday night.
On an evening in which the school honored its 1988 and 1992 national runners-up, the 2014 team earned its first home playoff victory in 11-man football with a 34-14 victory against DeSoto School (Ark.) in the first round of the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class A playoffs.
KC Cunningham rushed 26 times for 284 yards and four touchdowns. Dawson Shaw added a 13-yard touchdown pass to Alex Vasquez to account for the scoring. The Rams had 65 carries for 441 yards.
The win helped Columbus Christian (7-4) set a school record for victories in 11-man football and equaled their most wins in a season since 2003, when the school went 7-3 and was a member of the Christian Football Association. The previous high was 2010, when the Rams finished 6-6 and made the playoffs for the first time. Columbus Christian, which was known as Immanuel Christian prior to this season, first started playing 11-man football in 2007.
This year, they also earned their first playoff victory since a 40-14 victory against Faith on Nov. 6, 1998. That victory was in the Southeastern Christian Conference.
With the victory, fifth-seeded Columbus Christian will advance to face fourth-seeded Natchez Trinity Episcopal, which beat Central Holmes, next week. Trinity Episcopal beat Columbus Christian 55-0 in the first round of the 2013 Class A playoffs. The Saints went on to win the state title.
n Starkville 27, Warren Central 17: At Starkville, the top-ranked Yellow Jackets secured home-field advantage in the playoffs with a huge comeback win.
Starkville (10-0, 6-0 Class 6A, Region 2) will play at Clinton (9-1, 6-0) Friday night in a battle for first place in the region. Both teams will play host to first-round playoff games Nov. 14.
Starkville trailed for the first time this season when Warren Central (8-2, 4-2) scored on its third possession. The Vikings stretched the lead to 17-0 before the Yellow Jackets fought back.
In the final 14 minutes, 25 seconds, quarterback Brady Davis threw four touchdown passes — two to A.J. Brown and two to Raphael Leonard.
The defense sparked the turnaround. Starkville forced three turnovers in the third quarter, with Lorenzo Dantzler and Abdural Lee recovering fumbles and Terrance Grayer intercepting a pass.
“We felt like if we could get one big turnover, it would change the game,” said Dantzler, who also had a key third down sack with his team leading 21-17. “Even though they hit us for some plays early, we kept battling.”
Warren Central entered the game allowing seven points per game. The Vikings quickly won the respect of Starkville coach Jamie Mitchell.
“It was our first major adversity of the season,” Mitchell said. “Warren Central is outstanding, especially on defense. To see what our kids did and to see the mental composure played with says a lot. Nobody got down. Instead, they just kept working.”
Starkville finished with 242 yards. Davis was 11 of 23 for 129 yards. Matt Fuller rushed 17 times for 87 yards to lead the Yellow Jackets on the ground.
n New Hope 20, West Point 15: At West Point, Junior tailback Brenton Spann scored on a 4-yard run with 27 seconds left, and the Trojans pitched a second-half shutout to earn the No. 2 spot in Class 5A, Region 1 with a victory against the Green Wave.
Spann, who ran for 127 yards, capped the comeback that allowed New Hope (9-1, 5-1 region) to beat West Point (7-4, 4-2) for the first time since 1998. The victory also New Hope secured a home playoff game in the first round of the North State playoffs.
New Hope quarterback Stone Sisson rushed for a 3-yard touchdown and threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Andre Erby.
For West Point, tailback Kadarius Forside, who left the game in the second quarter after taking a blow to the head, rushed for a team-high 106 yards on 11 carries, including a 54-yard touchdown.
n Columbus 42, Murrah 12: At Columbus, the Falcons’ playoff hopes remain intact.
Columbus had five drives start in Murrah territory in the first half and scored 35 first-half points en route to a key Class 6A, Region 2 victory Friday night.
Kylin Hill scored two touchdowns for the Falcons, who moved to 4-6 and 3-3 in the region. The Falcons are fourth in the region with one game left to play. They can secure a playoff spot next week with a win at Warren Central.
The Mustangs (6-5, 1-5) dropped to seventh in the region and were eliminated from playoff contention.
n Starkville Academy 26, Jackson Academy 22: At Starkville, the Volunteers registered their first victory against the Raiders to secure a home playoff game in the first round of the MAIS Class AAA, Division II playoffs.
Starkville Academy trailed 22-19 when it took over on its 27-yard line with 2 minutes, 45 seconds remaining. Led by quarterback Houston Clark, the Volunteers engineered a 14-play drive that culminated in a 10-yard touchdown pass to senior Logan Locke.
The victory helped Starkville Academy improve to 9-1. The win and a loss by Pillow Academy guaranteed the Volunteers a home playoff game.
n Victory Christian 45, New Life Christian 6: At Columbus, the Eagles used a dominating victory Friday night to secure their spot in the Christian Football Association title game next week.
Victory Christian (9-1) amassed 378 yards and scored three touchdowns on its first four plays. Senior Anthony Sharp rushed for 112 yards and three touchdowns.
The Eagles had a shutout until the final minutes. The defense forced three turnovers, blocked a punt, and held New Life Christian to 145 yards of total offense.
Victory Christian will face Tuscaloosa Christian, which beat Tabernacle 25-6 on Friday, next week in Cottondale, Alabama. Tuscaloosa Christian beat Victory Christian 70-67 in the regular season.
For more on these games and the rest of the local prep football action from Friday night, check out Sunday’s print edition of The Dispatch. You also can check www.cdispatch.com Sunday morning.
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