A close Region 8-AAAA game got out of hand seemingly in a matter of seconds Friday night.
Leading just 14-7, Loganville outscored Madison County 20-7 in the third quarter -- turning two crucial turnovers into immediate points -- in a 37-22 win over the Raiders in Danielsville.
The loss ended Madison County’s five-game winning streak. Madison County moves on to face Heritage next Friday in Conyers.
Trailing by only a touchdown, Madison County fumbled the ball away on its first possession of the second half with just over 10:00 remaining in the third quarter. Loganville’s Storm Johnson answered by breaking off a 46-yard touchdown run on the next play. Madison County then fumbled away the subsequent kickoff and Loganville's A.J. Schmidt threw a 33-yard touchdown pass one play later to give the Red Devils a 27-7 lead with 9:50 left in the third quarter.
Loganville tacked on another touchdown in the period to take a 34-7 lead.
Madison County ran just five plays in the third quarter, but did get a momentary boost when Jamal Cooper returned a kickoff 85 yards to cut the lead to 34-14. It was Cooper’s third return for a touchdown this season.
Loganville added a field goal in the fourth quarter, while Raider quarterback Jacob Owens scored from 12 yards out – his second touchdown of the night -- with 3:08 left in the game.
Loganville controlled the line of scrimmage, running for 366 yards. Johnson, a major college prospect who de-committed from LSU, finished with 179 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Mykel Wyyett added 122 more on the ground and one touchdown.
Loganville limited the Raiders to just 92 yards rushing and 166 total yards.
Madison County looked in position early to win its sixth-straight game, leading 7-0 in the first quarter after a one-yard touchdown run from Owens. That score was set up by a Matt Dean interception at the Loganville 28.
But Johnson warmed up in the second quarter, scoring two touchdowns in the period to give Loganville a 14-7 lead.
The loss moves the Raiders back into a tie for second place in 8-AAAA with Clarke Central. Both teams have 5-2 records. Loganville is half a game back at 4-2.
SCORE-BY-QUARTER
Loganville 0 14 20 3 -- 37
Madison Co. 7 0 7 8 -- 22
STATISTICS
Rushing -- Maxwell 8-30, Owens 12-30-2 TD, Cooper 5-4, Butler 4-8, Dean 1-2
Passing -- Maxwell 1-1, 50 yds; Owens 6-12, 45 yds
Receiving -- Turner 2-57, Cooper 2-20, McCrary 1-9, Maxwell 2-6
REGION SCORES
Apalachee 21, Habersham Central 13
Loganville 37, Madison Co. 22
Clarke Central 23, Salem 20
Rockdale Co. 14, Cedar Shoals 0
Winder-Barrow 48, Monroe Area 41
REGION STANDINGS
Apalachee 6-0
Madison Co. 5-2
Clarke Central 5-2
Loganville 4-2
Rockdale Co. 3-3
Salem 3-3
Cedar Shoals 3-4
Hab. Central 3-4
Winder-Barrow 2-4
Heritage 1-5
Monroe Area 0-6
