Sports Writer

OPELIKA – The Pike Liberal Arts School defense found a way to hold down Lee-Scott running back Christopher Selman for most of the first half on its way to a 7-7 tie at halftime.

But Selman and the Warriors owned the second half.

The Warriors rushed for 245 yards in the game, 165 coming in the second half, and Selman ran for 110 yards after intermission and two touchdowns as the Warriors held off a late Patriot rally to edge PLAS, 21-14 Friday in a Class AAA AISA East Region football game.

Lee-Scott amassed only 35 yards through the air, but held the Patriot offense to 184 total yards while partially blocking a punt that lead to its first score and forcing a crucial turnover late in the second quarter to halt a Patriot scoring opportunity.

After the partially blocked punt gave the Warriors the ball at the PLAS 29, quarterback Jay Neese found Evan White in the endzone on fourth and 30 to tie the game at seven with 3:09 to go in the first half.

The Patriots were forced to punt for the third consecutive drive on the ensuing possession, but Michael Uptain recovered a fumble one play later to give PLAS a chance at the endzone with 1:25 remaining, deep in Warrior territory. But on fourth and long, PLAS quarterback Layton Sanders was picked off by Henry Jackson, ending the threat and the momentum.

The Patriots jumped on top early, a 35-yard strike from Sanders to Brent Hill on the opening possession of the game to take a 7-0 advantage.

But penalties haunted PLAS throughout the rest of the first half and the game as the Patriots totaled 81 yards in penalties during the contest.

Lee-Scott controlled the clock for most of the game, holding a 16-minute advantage over the Patriots in time of possession.

After Selman capped two drives in the third quarter with touchdowns to take a 21-7 lead, PLAS fought back in the fourth quarter. First down receptions by Druid Conrad and Mark Brown and after another first down catch by Brown on fourth down set up a first and goal, the Patriots cashed in behind a four-yard run by Sanders, cutting the deficit to a touchdown with 9:17 to play in the game.

But the Warriors rushing attack took over the rest of the way, chewing up over eight minutes before PLAS took over on downs at its own 10 with 25 seconds left.

With the loss, PLAS fell to 1-4 and hosts Monroe Academy next week. Game time is set for 7:30.