PICAYUNE - Wayne County will open the state playoffs on the road.
Homestanding Picayune jumped out to a quick 21-0 lead after 15 minutes of play, and held on for a 27-21 win in a key Region 3-5A game Friday night.
It was the first ever win for the Maroon Tide in six all-time meetings against the War Eagles. The win gives Picayune the second seed in the league, behind West Jones while WCHS finishes third and Brookhaven fourth.
"Picayune was well prepared to play and we weren't, and that's my fault," WCHS head coach Marcus Boyles, whose team is 8-3 overall and ends up 5-2 in league play, said. "We played a very good football team that was ready to play and we weren't."
Picayune scored on its first possession, as Jacob Kennedy hit Jonathan Moore on a 16-yard scoring strike.
The Maroon Tide's Jamal Hall scored on a 5-yard run on Picayune's next possession, and it was 14-0 Tide late in the first quarter.
"We got some consistency in our passing game early and that helped us," Picayune head coach Dodd Lee, whose team has lost in the playoffs three of the last four years to the War Eagles, said. "We've had some tough losses to them. It's always good to win."
Kennedy went right back to the passing lanes early in the second quarter, hitting Scottie Merrill on a 3-yard touchdown toss to make it 21-0.
The War Eagles stormed back with 21 consecutive points over the rest of the second quarter and most of the third, as Malik Lofton scored on a 90-yard kickoff return as well as on a 50-yard pass from DeMarcus Henderson. Mark Bowman also scored on a 3-yard run for WCHS that tied the game at 21-21 with three minutes left in the third frame.
Picayune would drive 74 yards on 14 plays to win the game on a 21-yard pass from Kennedy to Chris Burton with 16 seconds left in the game.
Wayne County travels to Gautier Friday.
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