Leake Central battles past Philadelphia
The Philadelphia Tornadoes showed a lot of heart but couldn’t hold on in the end as they dropped a 43-34 decision to Leake Central last Thursday night in prep football action.
The Tornadoes, now 0-3 on the season, will travel to Winona this Friday night.
Leake Central jumped out to a 15-0 lead in the first quarter. Philadelphia fumbled the ball away one play after the kickoff. Three plays later, Leake Central scored and went up 6-0.
The Tornadoes took the ensuing kickoff. They were forced to punt on fourth down and then snapped the ball out of the endzone for a safety.
Down 8-0, the Tornadoes had a free kick on its 20-yard line. The Gators returned the ball for a touchdown and took a 15-0 lead.
But this game was far from over. The Tornado offense took the ball on its own 37-yard line. Philadelphia put together a 10-play drive that ended when Austin Donald scored on an eight-yard run. Adrian Luke kicked the extra point and the Tornadoes trailed 15-7.
Philadelphia scored again when Dee Burnside scored on a one-yard run in the second quarter. The try for two failed and the Tornadoes trailed 15-13.
The Tornadoes kicked off and scored a safety when the Leake Central runner went down in the endzone, tying the score at 15-15.
Leake Central retook the lead on a 15-yard scoring run. The kick was no good and the Gators led 21-15 with 3:29 remaining in the first half.
Philadelphia took the ensuing kickoff on its 47-yard and put together a six-play scoring drive. Chance Greer scored on a six-yard run, The kick was good and the Tornadoes led 22-21 at the half.
Philadelphia added to its lead when Donald scored again on a 30-yard gain. The kick failed and the Tornadoes led 28-21 with 3:40 left on the third quarter.
Leake Central scored on a 21-yard pass to tie the game. The extra point was good and the Gators led 29-28 at the end of the third quarter.
The Gators scored two unanswered touchdowns in the third quarter. The first came on a 13-yard run and the second was on a 67-yard return. The Gators scored a two-point conversion after the first scored and went up 43-28.
Philadelphia refused to give up. The Tornadoes took the ensuing kickoff and Burnside scored on a 13-yard run. The try for two failed.
Greer was the leading rusher with 78 yards. Imarion Black finished with 63 yards while Donald had 41 yards. Burnside completed 5-of-12 passes for 158 yards. He also rushed for 24 yards.