Round 2 – Division 3 Region C Semifinals
Heritage outpaces Brookville with a 28 point 2nd Quarter in route to a 49-21 win over the Bees
City Stadium, Lynchburg, VA – The last time the Bees and the Pioneers faced off, the two squads battled until the last seconds of the fourth quarter. The Heritage defense decided that game, stopping Brookville inches away on fourth down. The Bees had the ball with a first and goal opportunity to take the lead. This time, the Pioneers executed early, stringing together a 4TD second quarter that the Bees just couldn’t match. “The team stayed disciplined, we stayed physical and we played within our scheme,” Heritage’s RB 21 Rajan Booker-Felder said after the game, “we just had to overcome adversity and stay focused.” Focused was right on the money. The senior started the fire in the second quarter for Heritage, scoring the Pioneer’s first TD off a 43-yard sprint up the middle, propelling the Pioneers to their first lead of the game. The Bees were quick to sting back, QB 7 Drake McDaniel led the charge, using his athleticism to advance the ball down inside the Pioneer ten yard line. RB 9 Jaylan Pannell did the rest, muscling his way four-yards for a score to tie it up. But that was the last time the score was even. WR 23 Markus White reeled in the kickoff and hugged the home sideline all the way, ending in a 75-yard TD return. With four minutes left in the quarter, Brookville committed two costly turnovers leading to Heritage scores. First, DL 55 Treandre Clark recovered a Bees fumble, then QB 9 Jaicere Bateman hit White with a pass to move to the one yard line. Booker-Felder did the rest for his 2nd score of the night. MLB 50 Markaz Wood pounced on the second fumble and Bateman lasered a pass to WR 23 Markus White for the score and a 35-14 halftime advantage. Despite two TD’s from senior RB 1 Michael Viar and solid plays from the rest of Brookville, when time was up, Heritage was done too. “It sucks going out this way but I think we can say we gave it our all, 100% every play,” Brookville senior WR 3 Stephen Preston said after picking up a team high 62 receiving yards, “I’ve been playing with my dogs… my boys since 7th grade, I’ve loved doing that. We just didn’t come up on top on this one.” Brookville finished 8-4 for the ’22 season; it’s no question Coach Meeks and the underclassmen have big shoes to fill next year. “Their like my extended family,” Meeks said, “I love these guys, love this team and I’m gonna miss these seniors a lot.” Heritage head coach Brad Bradley was upbeat, “These kids, they battle. They started in January with off-season conditioning and through commitment and their dedication to this program… we’re going to Golden Corral. I’m so proud of them.” Next week Heritage will get another shot at 11-1 LCA, and most importantly, a chance to earn a spot in a state semifinal game. – Graham Whitaker
