Reidsville was able to secure a spot in the 2A West final of the N.C. High School Athletic Association football playoffs by capitalizing on five turnovers and three touchdown passes from Al Lee to three different receivers. Despite facing a strong offensive show from Bunker Hill, Reidsville managed to hold on for the win.

The Rams were victorious with a score of 41-26 on Friday and will be hosting the West final next week.

The ultimate result does not accurately reflect the intensity of the game, as Reidsville (13-1) scored a pick-six in the last minute to widen the lead in a game that remained close for most of the match.

At halftime, Reidsville was in the lead with a score of 20-19, but Bunker Hill (13-1) consistently had a response to the Rams’ moves. Despite starting off with a 6-0 disadvantage, the Bears were able to narrow the gap to a baseball-like score of 6-5, thanks to a field goal and a safety. The safety was a result of a mistake during a punt snap, which led to a 17-yard pass, followed by an interception that was caught at the 1-yard line.

Reidsville, the top-ranked team in the 2A West division, has dominated their opponents in the first three rounds of the playoffs with scores of 58-0, 42-7, and 41-20. Their sole defeat of the season was against 3A Eastern Alamance in week 4.

The most challenging assessment since then was at Bunker Hill.

The Bears responded to a 64-yard touchdown pass from Lee to Que’Shyne Flippen with a 66-yard touchdown pass from Redek Robinson to Talayn Weaver. Flippen had one touchdown and two interceptions in the game.

The Bears were able to score on an 82-yard pass from Robinson to Jaylan Willis, shortly after an 18-yard touchdown pass from Lee to Neal. Both Neal and Flippen had one receiving touchdown and two interceptions.

The Bunker Hill team, which was ranked fourth, had just won two close games in a row. They beat the Burns team, ranked 13th, by a score of 21-14, and then narrowly defeated the Monroe team, ranked fifth, with a score of 24-23. The Bears had not been conference champions since 1989, but this season was one of their most successful in school history.

Reidsville will face Shelby, the 7th seed, in a home game for the 2A West regional championship, marking a traditional playoff rivalry. In the East regional, Clinton will host Northeastern in a matchup between the 1st and 2nd seeds.

Scoring Summary

Reidsville scores a touchdown with a 14-yard run by Jariel Cobb, but misses the 2-point attempt. They currently lead 6-0 with 6:53 remaining in the first quarter.

At the Bunker Hill game, Alan Bahena Soto made a 1Q field goal from 36 yards, putting Reidsville in the lead with a score of 6-3 and 3 minutes and 48 seconds remaining.

At the end of the first quarter, Reidsville is leading 6-5 against Bunker Hill with a safety scored at 33.3 seconds.

At 7:12, Reidsville took the lead with a 64-yard pass from Al Lee to Que’Shyne Flippen, followed by a successful extra point kick by Grady Barrett. The score is now 13-5.

At the Bunker Hill game, there was a 66-yard pass from Redek Robinson to Talayn Weaver which resulted in a touchdown. The extra point was then successfully kicked by Alan Bahena Soto, bringing the score to 13-12 with 6:14 left in the game.

In Reidsville’s game, Al Lee threw a 18-yard pass to Dionte Neal, resulting in a touchdown. Grady Barrett successfully made the extra point, bringing Reidsville’s lead to 20-12 with 3 minutes and 54 seconds left in the game.

Redek Robinson throws a 2Q 82-yard pass to Jaylan Willis, who scores for Bunker Hill. Alan Bahena Soto successfully makes the XP, bringing the score to 20-19 with 2:58 remaining, with Reidsville in the lead.

At the 8:07 mark, Reidsville took the lead 27-19 with a 7-yard pass from Al Lee to Kendre Harrison, followed by a successful extra point made by Grady Barrett.

On Bunker Hill’s fourth quarter, Jason Willis Jr. made a 6-yard run and Alan Bahena Soto successfully made the extra point, bringing Reidsville’s lead to 34-26.

In the game between Reidsville and their opponent, Dionte Neal made a 49-yard interception return for a touchdown. Grady Barrett successfully kicked the extra point, bringing Reidsville’s lead to 41-26 with 58.9 seconds left in the game.

Source: highschoolot.com