Lamar moves on in playoffs with win
Raiders have rematch with Simpson
Raiders have rematch with Simpson
Courtesy of The Meridian Star
It took Lamar's offense one drive to get rolling Friday night at Marshall Academy in the second round of the MAIS Class AA playoffs. Once it did, though, the Raiders rolled right into the semifinals and a rematch with Simpson Academy following a 53-41 win against the Patriots. Simpson downed Indianola Academy 49-20. “We knew if we got to this point, we’d see them again,” Lamar coach Mac Barnes said. Lamar (11-1) fell behind Marshall 14-0 as the Raiders didn't score on their first possession. After that, though, Lamar scored on nine straight drives. Lamar led 27-20 at halftime. "We knew it was going to be hard to stop them, especially early, because it was an offense we hadn't seen," Barnes said. Leading by a score at the half, Lamar received the opening kick of the second half and promptly went up 33-20. The Raiders then stuffed Marshall Academy on downs inside the 10 and drove the length of the field to take the three-score lead. Marshall Academy would tack on three scores in the final six minutes. "They're a very good offensive team," Barnes added. "We knew we were going to have to score." Senior quarterback Witt Haggard led Lamar, throwing for four touchdowns and running for three more.Simpson handed Lamar its only defeat, 48-21, on Oct. 23 to capture the Region 3-AA title. “We played against a really good running team tonight,” Barnes said. “Plus, we played a tough team in Leake (Academy) two weeks ago and Oak Hill runs pretty well. “I’m very confident that our kids will come out and play well next week.”
It took Lamar's offense one drive to get rolling Friday night at Marshall Academy in the second round of the MAIS Class AA playoffs. Once it did, though, the Raiders rolled right into the semifinals and a rematch with Simpson Academy following a 53-41 win against the Patriots. Simpson downed Indianola Academy 49-20. “We knew if we got to this point, we’d see them again,” Lamar coach Mac Barnes said. Lamar (11-1) fell behind Marshall 14-0 as the Raiders didn't score on their first possession. After that, though, Lamar scored on nine straight drives. Lamar led 27-20 at halftime. "We knew it was going to be hard to stop them, especially early, because it was an offense we hadn't seen," Barnes said. Leading by a score at the half, Lamar received the opening kick of the second half and promptly went up 33-20. The Raiders then stuffed Marshall Academy on downs inside the 10 and drove the length of the field to take the three-score lead. Marshall Academy would tack on three scores in the final six minutes. "They're a very good offensive team," Barnes added. "We knew we were going to have to score." Senior quarterback Witt Haggard led Lamar, throwing for four touchdowns and running for three more.Simpson handed Lamar its only defeat, 48-21, on Oct. 23 to capture the Region 3-AA title. “We played against a really good running team tonight,” Barnes said. “Plus, we played a tough team in Leake (Academy) two weeks ago and Oak Hill runs pretty well. “I’m very confident that our kids will come out and play well next week.”
