South Walton suffers first loss as they prepare to keep Jay at bay

After suffering their first downfall, a 43-21 loss to county rival Freeport, the South Walton Seahawks will again have their hands full this week when they take on the Jay Royals.

“Jay is heavy laden in seniors,” said South Walton Coach David Barron. “They have 16 seniors and start 10 on both sides of the ball.”

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Both teams are coming off district losses, with Jay falling short to Vernon this past Friday, 20-13.

“We’ve told them, ‘if you want this, you’ve got to win the next three,’ ” Barron said referring to any chance at the district title.

The Royals’ record in District 1-A play is 1-3, while South Walton stands at 4-1.

Although Jay has only one district win, Barron said they have been in every game with close outcomes.

“They are a very competitive and very hard-nosed,” he said.

Barron described the Royals as a “triple option team.”

“They are going to run the option and most likely the toss sweep against us,” he said. “They don’t make a living by throwing but they can throw the ball.

“We’re not going to have to stop the pass as much as the run,” Barron said. “This is going to be assignment football. You’ve got to take care of your assignment or be in a world of hurt. And we hope it will be a positive for us.”

Friday’s game in Freeport failed to be a positive for the Seahawks.

“We played very poorly,” he said. “We loafed. We didn’t put any effort into it like you have to to win big games like that.”

Freeport rushed for 290 yards and passed for 84 for a total of 374 yards, while holding the Seahawks to 160 total offense.

The Bulldogs jumped out to a 19-0 lead in the first quarter, scoring two of their touchdowns off turnovers.

In the second quarter, South Walton came back with two quick scores of their own in less than two minutes. The first was a 30-yard strike from Dennis Smith to Jay Gatto with Jonathan O’Hara kicking in the point after. The second came off a fumble. Freeport coughed up the ball and South Walton’s Zack Parker scooped it up and ran it back for a 32-yard touchdown. O’Hara kicked in the point after for a 19-14 game.

The Bulldogs used up almost six minutes on their next drive taking the ball 74 yards with Cody Binder capping it off on a 15-yard TD run up the middle. Weeks hit Ellington for two-points and the Bulldogs were up 25-14.

But again, the Seahawks came right back with Bryant Adams shaking off about two or three tackles for a 53-yard TD. O’Hara kicked in the point after for a 27-21 score at the half.

Neither team scored in the third quarter.

In the fourth, Freeport put up a 23-yard field goal.

In the last three minutes, South Walton gave up two touchdowns, one on a turnover for a 43-21 finish.

“We were still in it at the end of the third quarter,” Barron said, noting they were only down by six points. “But we couldn’t get it done.

“We put ourselves in a hole in that first quarter and couldn’t dig out of it