Montgomery, Alabama -- A'montae Spivey & Peter Parrish had three rushing touchdowns each as Central-Phenix City defeats Lee-Montgomery 52-30 in a shoot-out on Saturday at the Cramton Bowl. The Red Devils used big plays for their offense to get the win and clinch the Class 7A, Region 2 Championship.
Central-Phenix City (8-0, 5-0) scored early and often on offense to get the win against pesky Lee-Montgomery. "We had a big fight on our hands today, but I was really proud of our team and our effort," said Red Devils Head coach Jamie DuBose. "We haven't had many fourth quarter games for us this season so this was good for us. Lee came into the game with a good game plan for us."
The Red Devils scored first in the game when Peter Parrish scored on a 48-yard touchdown run around the right side of the offense. The scoring drive was only five plays for 63 yards and Central led 7-0 with 10:42 left in the first quarter. With 6:31 left in the first quarter, Lee responded when Kaniaus Johnson scored on a spectacular 42-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7.
Central stopped the Generals offense and scored quickly when Parrish scored on a 35-yard touchdown run and with 5:50 left in the first quarter, Central led 14-7 and the track meet was on. With 10:42 left in the second quarter, Central scored on an 11-yard touchdown run by Spivey to give the Red Devils a 21-7 lead and it looked like Central was just going to run away with the game, but Lee said let us get on this touchdown train. With 8:20 left in the half, Tedarrian Murray scored on a 41-yard touchdown run and the Generals cut the lead to 21-14.
With 4:46 left in the half, Kaniaus Johnson faked a deep pass and took off in the backfield and raced 31-yards for a touchdown. With the score, Lee tied the game at 21-21 late in the first half. With just :32 seconds left in the half, Spivey scored again on a 24-yard touchdown run and Central took back the lead going into halftime. Central killed the last four minutes of the quarter to keep the Lee offense off the field. With the score, Central took a 28-21 lead and there was 49 points scored in the first half.
In the second half with 8:30 left in the third quarter, kicker Justin Lott hit a 36-yard field goal, his career best, to cut the Central lead to 28-24. Right after the Central FG, Spivey goes on a 73-yard touchdown run for another big play for Central and a 35-24 lead with 8:05 left in the third quarter. Lee wasn't done as they responded on their next drive and Johnson scores on a 25-yard run for the Generals and the Central lead was cut to 35-30 with 5:04 left in the third quarter.
Again right after a Lee score, Parrish goes 83-yards for a Red Devils touchdown and Central led 42-30 with 4:10 left in the third quarter. With 5:10 left in the fourth quarter, Zachary Johnson kicked a 20-yard field goal and Central led 45-30. That field goal was setup by a 51-yard punt return by Justyn Ross at the Lee 1-yard line.
After Lee turned the ball over on downs, Central took the ball and with Parrish dropping back and throwing deep down the field, Ross made a one-handed catch and ran into the end zone for a Red Devils touchdown with 3:21 left in the game. Ross made an unbelievable catch for the score. "I just saw the ball and the defender grabbed my left hand so I just reached up with my right hand," said Red Devils WR Ross. "This was big winning the region and getting to play our playoff games at home. That is a big deal. This was a good win for us to play like we did and get the win. We haven't had a lot of games going into the fourth quarter so it was good for us to come together and get the win on the road." With the Central TD, the Red Devils led 52-30 late in the game.
For Central on offense, Parrish had 179 yards on 12 carries with three touchdowns and Spivey had 154 yards on 12 carries for 154 yards with three touchdowns. What a great day for both players and the offensive line of the Red Devils.
Up next, Central will host Prattville while Lee will host Enterprise.
