Celina faces off with Jackson County in championship game

By KEVIN DONALDSON

Horizon Contributor

CELINA-The Celina K-8 junior high football team easily won their first-round playoff game against Red Boiling Springs 40-8 here on Saturday to advance to the conference championship game, set for Thursday, September 25. 

Earlier in the week, the Bulldogs had grabbed the number-one seed in the playoffs by defeating Jackson County.  They will face Jackson County in the conference championship at Westmoreland.  Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. 

K-8 coach Marty Maxfield expects his team to rise to the occasion in the title game against Jackson County, with only nine days separating the games between the two teams (details below). 

“Jackson County is a well-coached team,” Maxfield said. “Coach Loftis has done a great job of keeping both of his programs thriving this season.  He will have his team ready, and with a few surprises that we will need to prepare for. 

“Our defense has risen to the challenge all season,” Maxfield said. “This week won’t be any different. I believe in these boys and I believe in our team.”

PLAYOFFS

Celina……………….…40

Red Boiling Spgs……..8

For the second game in a row, Celina’s Matthew Duke returned the opening kickoff for a score, opening the floodgates for a 24-point first quarter for the Bulldogs. 

The RBS kickoff hit one of the front-line players for the Dawgs, and bounced toward Duke, who scooped it up and went basically untouched down the right side for a score.  Brogan Maxfield added the two-point conversion run and it was 8-0, Celina, with only 12 seconds off the clock. 

Maysun Johnson recovered an onside kick for the Bulldogs after that and Celina was in business again on the RBS 48.  The Dawgs survived a couple of penalties and scored again. 

Kamron King hit Duke for a 16-yard gain down to the RBS 15. Johnson ran for eight yards, and Maxfield took it in from seven yards out for the score.  King hit Scotty Strong for the conversion to make it 16-0 midway through the opening quarter. 

The Dawgs took over again on their own 23 late in the first quarter, and it didn’t take them long to score their third TD of the period. King rambled 77 yards for a score, and he hit Johnson for the conversion to make it 24-0 with under a minute left. 

Red Boiling fumbled the ensuing kickoff and King fell on it for the Bulldogs at the RBS 35.  A hold against Celina moved the ball back to the 45, where King connected with Johnson again, and the big tight end found his way to the end zone.  King hit Isaac Dawson for the conversion and Celina was up 32-0, which was the halftime score. 

Red Boiling punched a score across and added the conversion to close the gap in the third quarter, but Celina wasn’t done scoring.  The second-team offense scored a TD that was set up by a 46-yard return by the Dawgs’ Rylan Hummel on the kickoff after the RBS score. 

Celina took over on the RBS 24, and backup quarterback Tucker Donaldson rolled around left end for a score from there.  Anakin Vela ran for the two-point conversion to account for the final score. 

REGULAR SEASON

Celina………..……….30

Jackson County…..…0

CELINA – The Bulldogs wrapped up the regular-season conference title with yet another strong shutout win, which gave them the number one seed heading into the four-team playoffs. 

Big plays were the driving force behind the Bulldogs’ win, as they scored on three plays that covered at least 70 yards. 

The Bulldog offense had very few offensive plays in the contest, but they didn’t need them.  Celina ran only a double handful of offensive plays in the first half and still led 22-0, aided by Duke’s opening kickoff return for 70 yards down the right sideline. Maxfield added the two-point conversion and it was 8-0, Bulldogs, with only 12 seconds off the first quarter clock.  That was exactly the same amount off the clock after the opening kickoff return in the playoff game against RBS. 

Jackson County, tied with the Dawgs for the conference lead heading into the contest, then took the ball and held it for the rest of the first period.  The Blue Devils launched a 12-play drive that ended when the Bulldogs’ Johnathan Nagy recovered a fumble on the Celina 14 early in the second quarter. 

Celina quickly scored again. Duke ran for nine yards on first down and then King sprinted 77 yards (as he did against RBS) for the second Bulldog score.  The conversion failed and it was 14-0 just over a minute into the second quarter. 

Jackson County took over after a short Celina kickoff and moved the ball to the Dawg 27, but Nagy and Maxfield made another key defensive stop on fourth down to stop the drive. 

Celina scored again quickly. Duke scored on a 70-yard run and Tucker Donaldson added the conversion to make it 22-0 at intermission. 

Jackson County took over deep in their own territory after the second-half kickoff. A bad snap on an attempted Jackson County punt gave the Bulldogs the ball on the Blue Devil 16.  

King hit Johnson for a 16-yard touchdown on the next play, with Maxfield adding another conversion to account for the final 30-0 score.  King intercepted a Jackson County pass in the fourth quarter to keep the shutout intact. 

The Bulldogs scored those 30 points on their first 12 offensive plays of the game.