WEST POINT, Ala. – After clinching a playoff spot last week against Ardmore, the West Point Warriors looked to carry that momentum over into their home game against the Brewer Patriots on Thursday night. It was a tightly contested game but Brewer’s kickoff return for a score in the fourth quarter was the deciding factor in their 24-17 win over West Point.
West Point started the game out on offense, and behind the duo of Ollie Howell and Titan Thornton, they quickly moved the ball down to the 31. Their offense stalled after that, though, and they ended up turning the ball over on downs. The defense forced Brewer to punt on their opening defensive series, and a short run by Howell gave the Warriors a first down at the 41. After going backwards on their next two plays, a 62-yard touchdown pass by Ayden Ennis gave the Warriors a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter.
Brewer went on a long, methodical drive on their next series, and they ended up scoring on a three-yard run to tie things up at seven early in the second period. The early fireworks were only starting for both teams. A long kickoff return put West Point in excellent field position at the nine, and Ennis found Bryant Moon in the end zone on the first play to break the tie and give them a 14-7 lead. The Patriots struck gold on the first play of their next series, as a 75-yard touchdown pass tied it up at 14. After getting an early first down on a Howell run, the Warrior offense couldn’t get anything going after that, and their fake punt attempt was unsuccessful.
Another Brewer punt gave the ball back to West Point, and a big run by Howell, later followed by a 36-yard pass from Ennis to Moon, had them within striking distance of breaking the tie before the half. Three plays later, though, Ennis’s pass got picked off, but one last stand by the Warrior defense kept the game tied up at 14 at the half.
Penalties by both teams put them behind the chains on their opening possessions of the second half, and a punt, followed by a turnover-on-downs by West Point, gave the ball to the Patriots. Brewer picked up three huge first downs, including a pair of first downs on third down, and the Patriots ended up hitting a field goal to take a 17-14 lead. West Point was forced to punt on its next possession, but a muffed punt by Brewer allowed Chance Aldridge to recover the ball at the 40. A 27-yard run by Howell put the Warriors at the 13, but they quickly got behind the chains again, and Julio Fuentes nailed his field goal attempt to tie it up at 17. Brewer, though, didn’t waste any time breaking the tie, as they returned the kickoff 77 yards for the score to take a 24-17 lead.
The Warriors stuck to their ground game on their next possession, as some tough runs by Howell, Thornton, and Ennis helped them get to the 40. Back-to-back big runs by Howell quickly put West Point at 42, but Ennis threw an interception on the next play. A big run by Brewer on fourth down not only kept their series alive, but it helped burn some more time off the clock, and the Patriots ended up knocking off West Point 24-17.
Ennis finished 5/12 for 107 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Howell posted 103 yards on the ground on 20 carries.
West Point (5-5) will travel to Scottsboro for their first-round playoff matchup next Friday night.
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