PARKERSBURG -Parkersburg High had South Charleston right where they wanted them.
At Stadium Field in a must-win game for both teams. On Senior Night. On the night when Nick and Mark Swisher were being inducted into the PHS Hall of Fame.
It was Big Red running back Adam Lindamood who gave a Hall of Fame performance, accounting for 267 yards on 40 carries, but even that wasn't enough as the visiting Black Eagles used their superior speed and passing game to take a 41-21 victory that eliminated PHS from playoff contention.
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Photo by Jeff Baughan
Parkersburg quarterback Aaron Roberts, center, runs for yardage against South Charleston Friday as Daniel Carroza leads the way. South Charleston won, 41-21.
Thus, the Big Reds will take a 4-5 record next Friday night to George Washington, where the best they can do is finish with a .500 season.
South Charleston, meanwhile, got that coveted sixth win and its final 6-4 mark should put the Black Eagles in the playoffs.
It didn't take long for SC to establish its dominance. After the Big Reds took the opening kickoff and drove to the South Charleston 26, Black Eagle freshman Christopher Perkins picked off a Parkersburg pass and returned it to the PHS 22. Four plays later, SC quarterback Kentre Grier hit Marquel Hampton with a 7-yard TD pass and a 7-0 Black Eagle lead.
The next two drives were nearly identical as PHS marched all the way to the SC 40 before throwing another interception. Two plays later, Grier sped over the middle for a 58-yard TD and a 14-0 lead with 1:02 to play in the opening stanza.
Parkersburg started its next drive with a 50-yard run by Lindamood, who carried on nine of the 11 plays as the Big Reds went 86 yards, including Lindamood covering the final 9 to cut the deficit to 14-7 with 7:41 left in the half.
But SC quickly drove to the Big Red 20 and Grier threw a 19-yard pass to Trevond Reese, setting up a 1-yard TD run by Ken Haynes for a 20-7 halftime lead.
The Black Eagles took the second half kickoff and needed just five plays to go 80 yards, with Grier hitting Kevin Forrrest on a 50-yard TD for a 27-7 lead with 10:04 left in the third quarter. Then, it got worse for the home team as Reese returned a punt 84 yards for a 34-7 edge.
Parkersburg got a pair of scores -one by Lindamood, the other by quarterback Aaron Roberts -to cut the deficit to 34-21 heading to the fourth quarter, but SC scored the game's final TD on a 67-yard Grier-to Forrest pass with 5:19 left.
Roberts had 90 rushing yards on 14 attempts. But Parkersburg completed just three passes and had two intercepted while Grier was 10-of-13 for 234 yards.
