Central rallies to beat Belhaven 31-17 in final quarter

JACKSON, Miss. — Central scored the final 21 points of the game Saturday to defeat Belhaven 31-17 at Belhaven Bowl Stadium.

Belhaven held leads in both halves. The Blazers (1-2) led 17-10 early in the third quarter before Central responded with three consecutive touchdowns.

Belhaven opened the scoring just two plays into the game. Tre Chaffier forced a fumble at the Central 40-yard line, and John Ross Craven recovered. The Blazers moved into the red zone on a 12-yard pass from Ian Burleson to Dwayne Winfield and a 13-yard run by Jaylon Harris. A 27-yard field goal by Lyndell Boatman gave Belhaven a 3-0 lead.

Central tied the game with a 22-yard field goal with 6:06 remaining in the second quarter. Belhaven responded with a 75-yard, 10-play drive, capped by Julien Tabor’s 29-yard touchdown run, giving the Blazers a 10-3 lead with 1:50 left in the half.

Just 99 seconds later, Brett Connolly connected with Tate Jirovsky for 52 yards on third down, then threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Jirovsky with 11 seconds remaining, sending the game into halftime tied at 10.

Belhaven opened the second half with an eight-play, 66-yard touchdown drive. Burleson completed a third-down pass to John Davis and later hit Nehemiah Philip for a 26-yard score, putting the Blazers ahead 17-10 with 11:14 left in the third quarter.

Central responded with a 77-yard drive, tying the game on a five-yard touchdown pass from Connolly to Elam Parises. The Dutch took the lead after an interception set up a short scoring drive. Jase Grunder’s eight-yard run put Central ahead 24-17 early in the fourth quarter.

Belhaven advanced into Central territory again but stalled after an intentional grounding penalty. The Dutch sealed the game with a 67-yard touchdown run by Cody Klein with 3:17 remaining. Central finished with 445 yards of offense, including 224 rushing, and held Belhaven to 302 yards.

Burleson completed 15 of 28 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown. Tabor led the Dutch ground game with 73 yards and a score on 16 carries. Philip was the top receiver for Belhaven with four catches for 50 yards and a touchdown. Defensive standouts included Brayden Bullock and Quincy Jackson, who combined for 13 tackles and multiple tackles for loss.

Belhaven will have an open week before facing Brevard on Oct. 3 at noon in its next game, according to the school’s athletic department.

Source: Original Article