By BRET H. MCCORMICK, Journal Sports
ALEXANDRIA — Byrd cut an 18-point first-half deficit to just two in the fourth quarter, but the Yellow Jackets’ bid for a second straight playoff upset came up short in a 43-32 loss to No. 2 Alexandria Senior High Friday night in the Division I Select quarterfinals.
The 10th-seeded Yellow Jackets (9-4) cut ASH’s lead from 18 to eight at the half, thanks to a 52-yard touchdown pass from senior Harrison Ayres to Quinton Hilliard and a 44-yard field goal by junior Asher Murray, and they dominated possession in the third quarter, running 20 plays to just four for the Trojans.
A 16-play drive to start the second half came up empty, though, when the Jackets were stopped about a yard short on fourth down at the ASH 13-yard line.
Byrd coach Stacy Ballew said getting points on that possession could have swung the momentum even more in the Jackets’ favor, but he felt they needed to finish that drive with a touchdown rather than a field goal.
“We came down here to win, not just to go for a scrimmage so we’re gonna play to win and we needed that,” Ballew said.
Byrd trimmed the Trojans’ lead to just two with 8:18 left to play in the game when slot receiver Kristian Robertson took a reverse toss 10 yards into the end zone. The Jackets’ 2-point conversion attempt would have tied the game at 28 but was stopped a yard short.
“At the end, we found a way to get stops after long drives, and I’m proud of the performance,” ASH coach Thomas Bachman said. “I’m proud to be moving on.”
After watching Byrd score 16 straight points, the ASH offense woke back up in the fourth quarter as the undefeated Trojans leaned on their steady and spectacular senior running back JT Lindsey.
Lindsey’s 6-yard touchdown run gave the Trojans a two-score lead, 35-26, with 4:04 to play, and an interception by sophomore safety Ja’kyrin Griffin set up another Lindsey touchdown run to put the game out of reach.
The two fourth-quarter touchdowns gave Lindsey a season-high five scores for the game, four on the ground and one receiving.
Lindsey, an LSU commitment who rushed for a game-high 166 yards and surpassed 2,000 yards rushing on the season, moved ASH up 7-0 with a 9-yard touchdown just over three minutes into the game and scored his second touchdown from 8 yards out on the Trojans’ next drive for a 14-3 lead after Murray’s 52-yard field goal got Byrd on the scoreboard.
Ayres answered with an 85-yard touchdown run, but a 47-yard pass from Max Gassiott to Lindsey and a 23-yard pass from Karsen Sellers to senior tight end Tanner Townsend on the next two Trojan possessions gave ASH a 28-10 lead.
“Hats off to them, man, their kids played great and they’re a well-coached team,” Ballew said. “And I love my team. These guys have played their tails off all season long.”
Although the Trojans (12-0) looked poised to run away with the game as they have done in recent weeks, the Yellow Jackets had different plans.
They took advantage of a slip in the Trojans’ secondary on Ayres’ touchdown pass, and then after forcing a three-and-out, were able to get another score before halftime on Murray’s second field goal.
Although the Jackets were unable to take the lead in the second half, they continued fighting until the final whistle, scoring on the game’s final play, senior fullback Desmond Simmons’ 19-yard run.
Byrd rushed for over 400 yards, led by Simmons’ 137 yards. Ayres added 129 yards, and Christian Maxie finished with 94. The Jackets outgained ASH 484 yards to 368 and never punted.
Simmons went over 1,000 rushing yards on the season with his performance Friday night, finishing the year with 1,028 yards, while Maxie came up just 6 yards shy of 1,000.
“I knew we were gonna come down here and give them a game,” Ballew said. “To win it, we gotta make plays and we didn’t do it. But I knew we were gonna give ‘em a game. I like our ball club, and hats off to theirs. They were definitely the better team tonight.”
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ASH TROJANS 43, BYRD YELLOW JACKETS 32
Yellow Jackets 3 17 0 12 – 32
Trojans 7 21 0 15 – 43
A – JT Lindsey 9 run (Channing Meche kick)
B – Asher Murray 52 field goal
A – Lindsey 8 run (Meche kick)
B – Harrison Ayres 85 run (Murray kick)
A – Lindsey 47 pass from Max Gassiott (Meche kick)
A – Tanner Townsend 23 pass from Karsen Sellers (Meche kick)
B – Quinton Hilliard 52 pass from Ayres (Murray kick)
B – Murray 44 field goal
B – Kristian Roberson 10 run (run failed)
A – Lindsey 6 run (Meche kick)
A – Lindsey 10 run (Vaughn Darbon run)
B – Desmond Simmons 19 run (no PAT)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing – Byrd (59-408), Simmons 21-137, Ayres 19-129, Christian Maxie 12-94, Hilliard 6-38, Roberson 1-10; ASH (35-221), Lindsey 25-166, Darbon 8-40, Darius Washington 1-3, Sellers 1-12.
Passing – Byrd, Ayres 3-8-1, 76; ASH, Sellers 6-12-0, 97; Gassiott 2-2-0, 50.
Receiving – Byrd, Hilliard 1-52, Alex Schoonover 2-24. ASH, Washington 4-33, Alex Fontenot 1-27, Lindsey 1-47, Jimmie Duncan 1-17, Townsend 1-23.