CHULA – Tiftarea Academy Panthers had a powerful win over Terrell Academy Eagles on Fri. Oct. 30.

It was the first game back for the Panthers after mandatory quarantine and the first of three games back-to-back trying to make up for lost time.

The beginning of the first quarter showed signs of this being a defensive game, and those signs turned out to be true as Jackson Hoover and the Tiftarea defense shut down the visitors from Dawson.

“Defense played really well,” said head coach Erik Soliday. “We didn’t miss much on that side.”

The Eagles defense was able to force a punt from the Panthers after a single first down caught by Jayk Sailer. The Panthers defense answered the call to the field and forced a fumble on third down. Dylan Harbort recovered the fumble and gathered his offense on the field.

It didn’t take long for Harbort and Sailer to make some magic happen on the field. Three plays in, Harbort found Sailer for a 50-yard touchdown pass and the Panthers took the early lead 6-0 after missing a extra point attempt after the touchdown.

The Panthers defense quickly shut the Eagles offense down again on their first drive. In a blink of an eye, Harbort was back on the field with his offense. Terrell’s defense stepped it up and forced the Panthers to fumble the ball on the second drive.

The first quarter ended with the ball in the Eagles’ hands and a single score on the board of 6-0 Panthers lead. However, Tiftarea was able to once again get the ball back after a forced punt.

Harbort used a quarterback keeper to get the ball into the end zone for the touchdown and gave the ball to running back Kameron Brown for a two-point conversion.

The Panthers were now up two touchdowns, but Terrell had enough time for final drive in the first half.

The first half ended with Terrell Academy missing a field goal try to put up some much needed points after John Adam Copeland came through with a big block.

In the second half, there was no scoring from either side of the ball. Both teams’ defense played a full four quarters. The first and second quarter touchdowns proved to be deciding factors in the game.

“We didn’t play particularly well, but you gotta win somehow,” said Soliday. “It’s about getting our timing and speed of the game back. We are gonna have to play much better than that if we expect to win anymore ball games.”

Tiftarea suits up again Tuesday to face off against Pinewood Christian. The following Friday the Panthers play again against Brookwood in Thomasville for another away game.