Calhoun's Thomas Lester (2) runs the ball past Westminster's Harrison Jones (6) Friday at Calhoun High School.CALHOUN, Ga. - On a crazy night under a full moon at Phil Reeve Stadium, Calhoun used a crushing defense and a red-hot Kaelen Riley to defeat Westminster, 19-8, and earn the program's fifth trip to the GHSA championship weekend in the past six years.
CALHOUN 19, WESTMINSTER 8Star: Calhoun quarterback Kaelen Riley completed 18 of 23 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns as the Yellow Jackets won their Georgia Class AAA semifinal.Up next: Calhoun will face top-ranked Washington County next Friday in the Georgia Dome for the state championship.
Calhoun (14-0) will face Washington County, also 14-0, next Friday in the Georgia Dome.
Riley, coming off perhaps his worst game as a starter, was 18-of-23 passing with three touchdowns and added 56 yards rushing as the Yellow Jackets dominated from the start of a game delayed over an hour by two separate issues. A minor accident involving the Westminster bus and a power outage on one lighting bank had both teams chomping at the bit to get on the field, but once they did the Jackets' defense and their junior quarterback stole the show.
Calhoun's Landon Rice (44) slips past Westminster's Chase Williams (3) driving towards the end zone during the GHSA Class AAA semifinal matchup at the Yellowjacket's home field on Friday."It waw a roller coaster of a night," Calhoun coach Hal Lamb said. "I wasn't happy about the delays, and I knew then it was going to be a crazy night once that happened. Our kids played with tremendous heart and effort tonight. It was a weird night that ended tremendously, and now we get to hopefully go win another championship."
The Wildcats (12-2) had the game's first opportunity, using a short Calhoun punt and Zay Malcome's 30-yard run to start the second quarter at the Jackets' 1. However, four runs -- three by 1,500-yard rusher Malcome -- were stuffed by the swarming Calhoun defense. Westminster would not sniff the red zone again until the final two minutes.
After a failed Calhoun field-goal try and a three-and-out by Westminster, Calhoun marched 77 yards in just seven plays, three of those Riley pass completions. Thomas Lester had a pair of 27-yard catches, the second one reaching the end zone with 1:46 to play before halftime. The point-after kick was missed, however, and the Jackets led 6-0 at the break.
Calhoun's Chazz Moss (21) fumbles the ball after being hit by Westminster's Chase Williams (3) and John Sanders (14) during the first half of the GHSA Class AAA semifinal matchup at Calhoun High School on Friday.The margin grew to 12 on Calhoun's first play of the second half when Riley hit Lester again on a post pattern for 55 yards, though the try for two points failed. Riley struck again early in the final quarter to essentially put the game away, hitting Malik Lawrence for a 43-yard touchdown.
The Westminster offense, so reliant on Malcome, couldn't sustain drives. Malcome, harassed all night by Jireh Wilson, Landon Rice, Austin Bennet and crew, managed just 98 yards on 26 attempts.
"We had to tackle 32, who was a really good back," Lamb said of Malcome. "We kept him hemmed in most of the night. I also thought we played well offensively, and Kaelen was outstanding."
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296.