North Hall rallied in the final two minutes to beat Greater Atlanta Christian 27-23 at The Brickyard and take over first place in Region 6-3A.
With the win, North Hall (5-2, 4-0 Region 6-3A) has sole possession of first place in the region. It also was North Hall's first win in the series.
Trailing GAC by three points with 1:44 left, North Hall appeared to be headed to its sixth straight loss to the Spartans (3-4, 3-1 Region 6-3A), but the Trojans showed the resiliency that has been their trademark this season.
“When you look in our fieldhouse on the walls, we have ‘In The North We EAT,’” North Hall Coach Sean Pender said. “EAT stands for effort, attitude and toughness. It’s something we preach all the time. The effort we talk about at Noth Hall is don’t give up; keep pushing no matter what. Play the next play.”
The Trojans played the next play, and when the Spartans opened the door, the Trojans pounced.
With 1:44 to play, GAC’s punter Cooper Parsonnet could not handle a low snap, and the Trojans took possession at the GAC 36. North Hall quarterback Smith McGarvey hit Parker Carlton with a 12-yard pass to the 24. On the following, wide receiver Cole Cable outjumped the GAC secondary to catch the game-winning 24-yard pass from McGarvey.
“I had an offsides penalty (on an earlier drive) that cost us,” Cable said. “I told my teammates I had their back. I just went out there and made a play.”
The Trojans defense shut the door with Conner Harwood’s interception after a sack from Tanner White.
North Hall built a 20-0 lead early in the first half by taking advantage of three turnovers. Senior defensive back Charlie Dyer stepped in front of Tommy Young’s pass and returned the interception 62 yards. Carlton’s 1-yard run gave the Trojans a 7-0 lead.
Defensive lineman Hunter Robertson recovered a GAC fumble at midfield. Carlton capped the 50-yard drive with a 6-yard TD run to put North Hall up 13-0.
Two possessions later, Parsonnet could not get a punt off after a high snap, and North Hall’s Robby Lee tackled him at the GAC 16. A 12-yard pass from McGarvey to Luke Jenkins was followed by a 4-yard run by Carlton to put the Trojans ahead 20-0.
The Spartans cut the lead to 20-10 at the half with a 2-yard scoring run by Chandler Dawson and a 27-yard field goal from Graham Anand.
GAC took the lead in the second half with a pair of long touchdown passes. On the first play, after a 10-play North Hall drive failed to yield points, the Spartans scored on a double pass with Young lateraling to receiver Gabe Daniels, who hit Will Pohill for the 80-yard score.
On the long North Hall drive, the Trojans lost quarterback Alex Schlieman to an injury. He and McGarvey have been splitting playing time this season.
The Spartans took the lead at 7:06 when Jack Griggs turned a short pass from Young into a 71-yard scoring play.
“A lot of things happened in that game,” Pender said. “We had momentum early, we lost momentum. We had a nice drive, and then our quarterback got hurt. We miss a field goal, and then they have the trick play for the touchdown. They ended up taking the lead. We were able to overcome all that adversity.”
Now, the Trojans continue a two-game stretch against the other top region contenders. They travel to play Lumpkin County (5-2, 3-1) next Friday, looking to stay on top of the region.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2024/10/1266568/football-north-hall-on-top-of-region-after-late-win-over-gac