Mars Hill scores game-winning TD with 20 seconds left to beat Geraldine

By DRUW GIAMALVA The Reporter

GERALDINE — In an electric playoff atmosphere, the Geraldine Bulldogs hosted the No. 4 Mars Hill Panthers in a wild Class 3A second-round playoff matchup on Friday night. The Panthers edged out the Bulldogs 27-21 on their final offensive possession of the game. With 20 seconds remaining, Mars Hill junior running back Hudson Higgins ran in the game-winning 29-yard touchdown. Despite the loss, Geraldine head coach Michael Davis was proud of his players’ fight and effort.

“They continue to fight and show a lot of guts and resilience. That is all we ask. We didn’t make the plays we needed to. As far as effort goes, these guys fought. They fought back and gave us an opportunity at the end.

“I love these guys. I wouldn’t want to coach another group than we have here. I would go to battle with them any day,” Davis said.

Mars Hill started the game on offense at the 32-yard line, but their drive only lasted three plays, as senior defensive tackle Joe Garcia recovered a fumble and gave the Bulldogs the ball.

The Bulldogs started their first drive at their own 39-yard line, but they couldn’t take advantage of the good field position. Freshman running back Jordon Lankford started off the drive hot with an 18-yard run. On the next play, freshman quarterback Jon Beck Wade ran for 4 yards that set up a Garcia first-down run.

After a holding call on Mars Hill, the Bulldogs had the ball set up inside the 5-yard line, but Wade was stuffed on three consecutive runs and threw an incomplete pass, forcing a turnover on downs.

On the Panthers’ second possession, they ran a 15-play scoring drive for 98 yards. Higgins started off the drive with an impressive 8-yard run, which set up a first-down run by senior running back Caden Chandler. Chandler would continue to dominate the run game, as he would run for another first down.

The drive capped off with a 28-yard passing touchdown from senior quarterback William Mann to junior receiver Isaiah Owens. The PAT was good by junior kicker Parker Kennamer, giving the Panthers an early 7-0 lead.

The Bulldogs bounced back with their own scoring drive. The duo of Wade and Lankford controlled the ground game, as Wade started the drive with three consecutive runs that turned into a first down. After short runs by Lankford, Wade would quarterback sneak for a first down on fourth down.

On the next play, Wade tossed a deep ball to junior Gabriel Garcia for 44 yards. The deep ball would set up Wade for a 2-yard rushing touchdown. After the made PAT, the game was tied 7-7.

Before intermission, the Panthers would go for another scoring drive. Starting at the 19-yard line, Mars Hill relied on the legs of Higgins. Higgins ran for three first downs to put the Panthers inside the red zone. At the 10-yard line, Higgins ran for his first touchdown of the night, giving Mars Hill a 14-7 lead entering halftime.

After a punt from Geraldine on their first possession of the third quarter, Mars Hill would secure a two-possession lead over the Bulldogs. The drive started with a massive 34-yard run by Chandler to get Mars Hill to the 37-yard line.

After a few runs from Higgins and Chandler, Higgins collected his second touchdown of the night with a 25-yard run. Mars Hill went up 21-7.

The Bulldogs came back at the Panthers with their very own scoring drive. The duo of Wade and junior receiver Noah Richards connected on two screen passes to start the drive. The two passes combined for 15 total yards. A big run by Lankford set up Geraldine in the red zone. After no gain on the next two plays, Wade tossed an 18-yard touchdown to Garcia to cut the Panther lead to 7.

After forcing Mars Hill to punt, Geraldine had the opportunity to tie the game in the final quarter. The Bulldogs started their possession on the 18-yard line with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter. Freshman Wade used both his arm and legs to secure multiple first downs.

Wade captured his first with a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-one. Wade would then throw three consecutive balls to Richards that culminated in a first down. After three straight runs by Lankford, the Bulldogs found themselves in another fourth-down scenario. On fourth down, Wade looked for Richards again and converted another first down through the air.

After a first-down run by Lankford, Wade threw three straight incomplete passes, setting up the third fourth down of the drive. The Bulldogs kept the drive alive thanks to a personal foul on Mars Hill.

With less than a minute remaining, Wade ran in a 3-yard touchdown to tie the ballgame. After the made PAT, the game was tied 21-21.

Mars Hill started their final offensive possession at the 32-yard line. It took the Panthers only three plays to score. On the first play, Higgins ran for a 14-yard first down. The next play was a toss from Mann to sophomore tight end Matthew McIntyre for a gain of 25 yards. The nail in the coffin would be a 29-yard rushing touchdown by Higgins with 20 seconds remaining.

With little time left, Wade threw a Hail Mary on the last play that was intercepted by junior cornerback Isaiah Owens.

Although the Bulldogs had just suffered a season-ending loss, Davis was already ready to get to work for next season.

“We are going to go back to work. We are going to get better at what we need to get better at,” Davis said.

Geraldine ends their season with a 9-3 record. Mars Hill (11-1) will host Winfield (11-1) in the Class 3A quarterfinals next week.

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