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Bulldogs take down Red Devils 34-21, Advance to Quarterfinals

Michael Clements , , , , , ,

The Sweet Water Bulldogs hosted the Maplesville Red Devils for their second home game of the 2019 AHSAA Class 1A playoffs. The Bulldogs led most of the game, but did have to overcome a 1-point deficit in the third quarter before pulling away for the 34-21 win over the Red Devils to advance to the quarterfinals.

11-15-2019 — Sweet Water, Ala. — Sweet Water’s Trace Luker (10), Tyler Ward (65), Walker Thompson (8) and another Bulldog defender bring down a Maplesville ball carrier during the Bulldogs’ second round win over the Red Devils. (Photo by Johnny Autery)

The Dawgs received the opening kickoff and worked the ball to the 8-yard line where Jaylin Dixon ran it in for the first score of the game. Michael Alan Cole’s PAT gave the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead with 7:49 to go in the first quarter.

Maplesville’s first possession also ended with a score. The 6:18 possession was capped when the Red Devils’ Ryan Morrow crossed the goal line on a 5-yard run with 1:31 to go in the opening quarter. Jackson Abbott’s PAT was good and the Red Devils evened the score at 7-7.

The Bulldogs’ second score came on a 46-yard run by Jaland Lewis Horton. The PAT was unsuccessful, but the Bulldogs had a 13-7 lead with 11:17 to go in the second quarter.

11-15-2019 — Sweet Water, Ala. — Sweet Water’s Xavier Lucy breaks free into the open field during the Bulldogs’ second round win over the Maplesville Red Devils. (Photo by Johnny Autery)

Xavier Lucy got into the end zone at the 5:01 mark of the second quarter with a 42-yard run. Cole’s PAT was good and the Dawgs took a 20-7 lead over the Red Devils.

With 2:45 to go in the first half, Maplesville’s Abbott hit Christopher Hardy for a 48-yard TD pass. Abbott tacked on the PAT and the Red Devils closed the gap to 20-14. The Red Devils picked off a Bulldog pass in the end zone with 18 seconds to go to and the half ended with the Bulldogs leading 20-14.

Maplesville got the ball to start the second half and put together a drive that lasted until the 5:10 mark of the third quarter. Morrow got his second 5-yard TD run of the night and the Red Devils took a 21-20 lead on Abbott’s successful PAT.

11-15-2019 — Sweet Water, Ala. — Sweet Water’s Lashon Young cuts down a Maplesville ball carrier during the Bulldogs’ second round win over the Red Devils. (Photo by Johnny Autery)

The Maplesville lead was relatively short-lived as the Bulldogs took a little less than 4 minutes to reclaim the lead. Jaden Lewis crossed the goal line with a 26-yard TD pass from Braiden Broussard with 1:27 to go in the third quarter. A 2-point conversion attempt failed, but the Bulldogs reclaimed the lead at 26-21.

The Dawgs tacked on another touchdown with 4:38 to go in the game when Broussard crossed the goal line on a 1-yard run. Lucy converted the 2-point try and the Bulldogs took a 34-21 lead that would hold for the final score.

11-15-2019 — Sweet Water, Ala. — Sweet Water’s Jaylin Dixon eludes a Maplesville defender during the Bulldogs’ second round win over the Red Devils. (Photo by Johnny Autery)

The Bulldogs tallied 385 yards for total offense. The Red Devils totaled 259 yards. The Dawgs also converted all three of their fourth down attempts. Broussard went 6-8 for 118 yards. Lucy was the leading ground gainer, with 105 yards on 11 carries. Dixon had 70 yards on 5 carries. Horton had 49 yards on 13 carries and Broussard added 42 yards on 10 carries. Lewis led the receiving category with 63 yards on 3 catches. Young (21 yards), Sasha Smith (19 yards) and Horton (16 yards) had one catch each.

The second round win sets up a battle of the Bulldogs, as Sweet Water will host next week’s quarterfinal game against Brantley, who defeated Notasulga 49-21 to advance.