Norcross, Ga — The Pickens Dragons, were in win and stay alive mode on Friday, October 25th as they made the long trip down to Norcross to take on the Spartans of Greater Atlanta Christian in a first time ever match up between region 6-AAA foes. It was Senior Night for GAC as they honored Senior players, managers, trainers, cheerleaders, and band members. As for the game, the Dragons were able to withstand a major blow in the fourth to comeback and pick up a massive win, 28-25.

The Dragons, won the toss, but elected to differ to the second half. The Spartans, would drive the ball down the field, taking up nearly half of the first quarter with them. The Dragons, would hold the Spartans to a 24-yd field goal. GAC, would take a 3-0 lead with 6:44 left in the opening quarter. The Dragons, would use their run game during their first possession of the game as Carson Mitton would cap off the drive with a 16-yd touchdown run.

The PAT from McCordy Purdy was good and with 3:23 left in the first quarter, Pickens led GAC, 7-3. The Spartans, were looking to retake the lead as the first quarter came to a close with the Dragons ahead, 7-3.

At the 10:40 mark of the second quarter, the Spartans would retake the lead after a 4-yd touchdown run by QB Denzell Watkins. The PAT was good and the Spartans led the Dragons, 10-7. Later on in the quarter, the Dragons, had a chance of their own to retake the lead before the half as they had the ball near the goal line of GAC. With around 20 seconds left in the half, a pass attempt was tipped and picked off in the end zone by the Spartans. GAC led it, 10-7 at the half.

The Dragons, got the ball in first in the third quarter and would retake the lead as Hayden Jones connected with Purdy and Purdy would take it 49 yards to the house for the touchdown. The PAT by Purdy was good and with 11:17 left in the third, Pickens led GAC, 14-10. A perfectly placed pooch kick by Purdy on the ensuing kick off would be recovered by the Dragons on the GAC 18-yd line. The Dragons, would turn that into points as Mitton would power his way in with a 3-yd touchdown run. The PAT was good and Pickens led GAC, 21-10.

Later on in the third quarter, the Dragons were looking to again add to their lead as they were down near the 1-yd line of GAC as the quarter came to a close.

The Spartans, were able to stop the Dragons on 4th and goal from the 1-yd line to begin the fourth quarter. The Spartans would then need only one play to score as Pierce Wilson would scamper 99 yards for the touchdown. GAC, would then connect on a two point conversion attempt to make it 21-18 with 11:40 left in the game. After the Dragons were forced to punt, the Spartans again scored on a long play as Watkins found Jaden Henry for a 92-yd touchdown. The PAT was good and with 9:09 left in the game, the Spartans had their first lead since the second quarter, 25-21.

After the Dragons were forced to punt on their next possession, the Spartans took over looking to drain the clock and add to their lead. With under 5 minutes to go in the game, the Dragons caught the break they were looking for as they would recover a fumble by the Spartans. The Dragons, would drain a little bit of the clock as Jones would run to the left and reach the ball across the goal line for a 3-yd touchdown. The PAT from Purdy was good, and with 1:03 left in the game, Pickens led GAC, 28-25.

The Spartans, would get just past midfield with 10 seconds left and had the ball on 4th down. Watkins, would scramble to his left looking to throw, but the pass would come up short and the Dragons would hold on to defeat GAC, 28-25.

6-AAA Football Standings:

North Hall: 7-2 (6-0) Region Champions

GAC: 4-5 (4-2)

Lumpkin: 6-3 (4-2) clinched playoff berth

Pickens: 5-4 (3-3) (defeated Dawson, Johnson, and GAC lost to White County, North Hall, and Chestatee)

Dawson: 4-5 (3-3) (lost to Pickens, GAC, and Lumpkin defeated Johnson, White County, and Chestatee)

Chestatee: 4-5 (3-3) (defeated Johnson, Pickens, and White County lost to North Hall, Lumpkin, and Dawson)

White County: 2-7 (1-5) eliminated

Johnson, Gainesville: 0-9 (0-6) eliminated

As you can see, the standings are a little bunched up heading into the final week of the regular season next week. The Dragons, will welcome the Lumpkin County Indians to Jasper on Friday, November 1st in what has turned into a very important game for both teams. For the Dragons, they’ll need a win against Lumpkin, and a GAC win over Chestatee to get into one of the top 4 slots. For Lumpkin, a win over Pickens and a Chestatee win over GAC, would vault them into the 2 seed. A lot to play for for both teams next Friday night. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm.