CORINTH — Kewon Wyatt had Caledonia’s only touchdown in a 48-7 loss to No. 3 Corinth on Friday in the first round of the MHSAA Class 4A playoffs.
Wyatt had an 11-yard touchdown run in the third quarter with the Confederates (5-6) already trailing 35-0 on the road. He finished with four carries for 20 yards, second only to quarterback Brandon Edmondson, who had 32 yards on 13 carries.
Darquez Williams had 10 carries for 17 yards, Darrius Triplett had eight carries for 16 yards, Wes Rollins had two carries for 14 yards and Anthony Triplett had five carries for 12 yards.
Corinth (10-1) got out to a 28-0 halftime lead thanks to a 45-yard touchdown pass from quarterback DT Sheffield to Nazarius Jones and a 78-yard touchdown run from Sheffield in the second quarter. Sheffield opened the third quarter with a 29-yard scoring run as well.
Tameron Patterson had touchdown runs of 2 and 32 yards for the Warriors, who will host Rosa Fort (9-3) on Friday in the second round.
Caledonia is still looking for its first playoff win in school history.
Starkville Academy 24, Lamar School 22
MERIDIAN — Starkville Academy pulled off another road upset in the MAIS Class 5A playoffs, beating Lamar School 24-22 on Friday in Meridian on a late safety.
The Volunteers (8-4) beat the Raiders (8-4) when Lamar was called for intentional grounding in the end zone with under a minute left in the game, resulting in the go-ahead safety.
Running back CJ Jackson had a massive game for Starkville Academy with 30 carries for 183 yards and a touchdown. Matt Miller caught a 22-yard touchdown pass, and Dylan Starke caught a 3-yard touchdown pass.
Sam Clark led the charge on defense for the Vols, intercepting two passes and blocking a punt.
Starkville Academy will face Adams County Christian (9-3) in the Class 5A semifinals on Friday in Natchez.
Starkville 26, Clinton 7
STARKVILLE — Luke Altmyer threw three touchdown passes in the first half to lead No. 1 Starkville (10-2) to a 26-7 home win over Clinton (5-6) in the Yellow Jackets’ regular-season finale.
Altmyer found Joshua Aka for touchdown passes of 7 and 30 yards and connected with Rufus Harvey for a 3-yard strike.
The Yellow Jackets also recorded a safety in the second quarter, and Peyton Rodgers kicked a 34-yard field goal in the third quarter.
Starkville will host Horn Lake (5-6) in its first-round Class 6A playoff game Friday.
Columbus 32, Saltillo 20
SALTILLO — Columbus exploded for a 20-point second quarter to end its season with a 32-20 road win over Saltillo (1-11).
The Falcons didn’t score in the first quarter, trailing 6-0 at its end, but they blocked a Tigers punt for a touchdown to take the lead. Then they recovered a fumble and soon cashed it in on offense. Later in the quarter, junior quarterback Ethan Conner connected with Steven Turner for a 37-yard touchdown pass.
Columbus finishes its season at 4-7 after winning two games in 2017 and none in 2018.
Grenada 48, New Hope 14
NEW HOPE — New Hope senior Malachi Clay ran for a pair of touchdowns, but the Trojans were blown out by Grenada (7-4) at home on Friday, 48-14, in their final game.
New Hope trailed 34-0 at halftime, and Clay scored for the first time in the third quarter, with senior Ben Bradley kicking the extra point. Clay’s second touchdown came in the fourth quarter, and freshman Cole Crawford made the extra point.
Grenada qualified for the Class 5A playoffs and will travel to face Neshoba Central (8-3) on Friday.
New Hope’s season comes to an end with a 3-9 record.
West Point 35, Center Hill 0
OLIVE BRANCH — West Point dominated Center Hill on the road Friday, 35-0, to finish off the regular season on a 10-game winning streak.
Senior Brandon Harris, who missed time with an injury, got the scoring started for the Green Wave with a 2-yard touchdown run less than three minutes in. In the second quarter, Jordan Rupert blocked a punt, and Kristian Bennett returned it for a West Point touchdown. Jimothy Mays had a 46-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, and Dantariyus Cannon had a 3-yard scoring run before the half.
In the second half, Robert Spearmon recovered a Center Hill fumble at the Mustangs’ 20-yard line, and West Point immediately cashed in on a 20-yard touchdown run from Corbin Kelly to push the lead to 35-0. West Point held on to complete the shutout of Center Hill (6-6).
The Green Wave are 11-1 and will host Provine (9-3) in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs Friday.
Tupelo Christian Prep 35, West Lowndes 6
BELDEN — Playing for the No. 3 playoff seed in Class 1A, Region 2, West Lowndes struck first against Tupelo Christian Prep on Friday in Belden.
Then the Eagles responded with 35 unanswered points for an emphatic 35-6 win.
No stats were available despite attempts to reach coaches.
The Panthers (8-3) will face No. 3 Biggersville (8-1) on Friday in the first round of the Class 1A playoffs.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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