BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
VALLEY — Valley High School’s flag football team apparently saved its best for last in the final stretch of the regular season.
The Lady Rams (7-7, 5-5) went on the road Oct. 20 and beat LaFayette High School (0-9, 0-8) 21-14 at Bulldog Stadium, the first of three straight Class 1A-4A Region 6 wins in three days that carried Valley into the playoffs as the region’s No. 4 seed.
Kailee Harris did damage with the arm and the legs against the Lady Bulldogs. Harris completed 15 of 25 passes for 131 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, and led all rushers with 91 yards and a TD on 11 carries, including a long run of 25 yards. Harris had a hand in all three Valley TDs and 222 of the team’s 272 total yards.
Hailey Murphy was Harris’ favorite target, catching eight passes for 54 yards and a TD, with a long of 22.
Zorriah Simpson found the end zone too, finishing with four catches for 30 yards and a score while adding 16 yards on two carries. Nyla Spratling caught four passes for 42 yards, and Aniyah McCullough had three catches for 29 yards to go with 18 rushing yards on five carries.
Shylar White chipped in 16 yards on three carries as Valley ran for 141 yards on 21 attempts, an average of 6.7 yards per carry.
Skyy Boston accounted for both LaFayette TDs, running for one and throwing the other to Kamaria Beard.
The LaFayette win started the run. A day later on Oct. 21, the Lady Rams got even with Loachapoka High School at home, edging the Lady Indians (6-5, 5-5) 7-6 less than a month after losing to them 25-6 on the road on Sept. 22.
McCullough scored Valley’s only TD on the ground, and the point after proved to be the difference. Jalady Winchester ran for Loachapoka’s lone TD. McCullough ran for 12 yards on four carries and also led the Lady Rams with 51 receiving yards on three catches, including a 28-yarder.
Harris completed 14 of 29 passes for 166 yards with two interceptions and added 20 rushing yards on five carries.
Murphy again led Valley in catches with six for 68 yards and a long of 22. Simpson caught three passes for 33 yards, White had three for 15 and Trenity Sanders added a 16-yard grab.
Valley’s defense carried the night, finishing with 42 flag pulls. Sevin Potts and Alisa Hall had nine flag pulls apiece, Elaijah Shaver had eight and Mikkala James had four.
Valley then finished the run the next day, Oct. 22, with a 13-6 home win over crosstown rival Lanett High School (6-3, 6-3), sealed by a 43-yard pick-six.
The Lady Panthers had previously shut out the Lady Rams 22-0 on the road on Aug. 31. The win was Valley’s third in three days and locked up the No. 4 seed out of Class 1A-4A Region 6.
Miley Simmons handled most of the passing, completing 6 of 26 throws for 125 yards with a 30-yard TD and an interception. The scoring pass went to White for her catch of the night. Harris went 2-for-4 for 12 yards with two interceptions and caught a 6-yard pass.
McCullough caught two passes for 42 yards, including a 24-yarder. Murphy had three catches for 31 yards, and Ka’Mora Prothro added a 28-yard reception. Valley managed just 1 rushing yard on seven carries.
The defense again did the heavy lifting and scored the winning points. James returned an interception 43 yards for a TD and broke up three other passes, and Prothro picked off another. Hall and Angelina Jackson led Valley with seven flag pulls each, while Shaver and Egypt Dawson had five apiece. The Lady Rams finished with 36 flag pulls. Markala Bailey ran for Lanett’s only TD.
Postseason
Valley opens the playoffs on the road Tuesday, Nov. 3, at Wenonah High School. The game starts at 7 p.m. ET.
Lanett also reached the postseason and hosts Midfield High School on Thursday, Nov. 5, at Morgan-Washburn Stadium. That game starts at 6 p.m. ET.
