Showdown to decide district winner
The Lion football team held off the Haskell Indians Friday for a narrow 20-19 win to improve to 4-0 in district, setting up a District 7-2A showdown for the championship this week.
Albany (4-5, 4-0) will host the Hamlin Pied Pipers (9-0) in the regular season finale Friday at Robert Nail Stadium with the district title on the line. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m.
Both teams are already guaranteed the top two playoff spots, so it comes down to which school will grab the title.
Albany has 10 consecutive district championships and will be looking for another, while the Pipers have put together a perfect record thus far.
“Hamlin has a very good team and is playing with a lot of confidence right now,” head coach Denney Faith said. “They put a lot of pressure on opponents with the balance they have on offense, as well as having an outstanding defense.”
The coach noted this will be the last time seniors will ever play at Robert Nail Stadium, with senior night introductions set for 6:40 p.m.
“It will be a special night for the seniors, and it would be really great to win their final home game and the district championship,” he said. “We always appreciate what the seniors do for the team, and these five guys have given great effort.”
Faith said the score in the Haskell victory was much closer than it needed to be.
“It was a tough game for us,” he said. “Like every game so far in district, we had scoring opportunities that we didn’t take advantage of. We were in the red zone three times and were unable to put the ball over because of missed assignments or penalties.”
The coach did note some areas where the Lions excelled.
“Cutter Edgar rushed for over 240 yards, which is outstanding,” Faith said. “A lot of that can be attributed to how the offensive line played.”
He added that penalties hurt the team this week.
“We had eight penalties, and most came at crucial times,” he said. “We have got to take care of the ball and eliminate mistakes when we have the opportunity to score.”
Faith said that overall, the defense didn’t play as well as usual.
“It wasn’t our best defensive effort,” he said. “We didn’t tackle well and were out of position some of the time. But there were several times that we tackled for a loss. We just have to be consistent.”
Injuries continue to plague the team.
“Unfortunately, we are becoming used to moving people around to cover for injuries,” he said. “I’m pleased that the guys are learning to adjust and the coaching staff is doing a good job of coaching them up, but injuries have hurt us a lot this season.”
The coach noted that B.J. Morris is out for the season after knee surgery and Jackson Chapman is recovering from an appendectomy and probably can’t return this year.
Coby Knight was out against Haskell with a neck and rib injury, but is expected back. Blaine Kayga also suffered a bruised back in the game.
“Injuries have taken a big toll on us all through the season,” Faith said. “That isn’t an excuse, just a challenge to play better with new people in positions.”
Scoring Summary
Albany – Ben West passes to Ryan Hill for two-yard touchdown pass. PAT by Hill is blocked. 1st quarter – 2:18. Score 6-0.
Haskell – Reed Roewe runs for one-yard touchdown. PAT by Cutter Medford is no good. 2nd quarter – 8:56. Score 6-6.
Albany – Cutter Edgar makes 63-yard touchdown run. PAT by Hill is good. 2nd quarter – 8:38. Score 13-6.
Albany – Edgar runs for 3-yard touchdown. Hill kicks PAT. 3rd quarter – 8:02. Score 20-6.
Haskell – Cutter Medford runs for 15-yard touchdown. Medford kicks PAT. 4th quarter – 9:35. Score 20-13.
Haskell – Medford hits Roewe with 95-yard pass for touchdown. Medford’s PAT no good. 4th quarter – 5:46. Score 20-19.
