The Indianola Academy Colonels appear to be playing like a team on a mission.
One football game at a time.
With last Friday’s 35-7 home-field playoff opening win over Tunica Academy in the books, the 7-4 Colonels are now only two victories away from a fifth consecutive state championship game appearance.
However, a formidable task awaits the Colonels this Friday night as they will travel to Holly Springs to put their five game win streak on the line against the Marshall Academy Patriots in round two of the 3A state playoffs.
The Patriots, the District 1-3A champions, bring a 5-4 record into this Friday’s 7 p.m. match-up and according to IA Head Coach Tommy Nester, “They are a pretty dang good football team. They are big on both sides of the ball, have a big and athletic quarterback, and a very fast running back.”
“We will have to win the battle up front to have a chance,” he continued. “When you reach this point of the playoffs everyone is good and you have to bring your best game.”
Marshall Academy’s won-loss record belies the capabilities of their team. For in the last half of the season the Patriots have defeated Tunica Academy (42-6), IA’s district 2-3A champion (Winona Christian School), as well as dropping a narrow eight point decision to 5A first round participant Magnolia Heights School of Senatobia.
Should the Colonels defeat Marshall Academy this week, their next step will be a November 15 semi-final clash against the winner of this Friday’s Winona Christian-Centreville Academy contest.
A Winona Christian victory would put the Colonels on the road for round three while a Centreville Academy win will bring the IA squad back to its own Legion Field.
In last Friday’s victory over Tunica Academy, the Colonels scored on the game’s third offensive play and did so with a defensive touchdown.
“The kids played well,” said Coach Nester. “Everyone played in this game and played well. It was a good effort by all.”
The Colonels’ initial scoring in this game was generated by Walker Zepponi as the junior strong safety stepped in front of the Blue Devils receiver to intercept an incoming pass.
Scoring from 22 yards away, Zepponi’s touchdown was then followed by the first of five Spencer Roberson PAT kicks and the Colonels owned a 7-0 lead with less than two minutes gone in the game.
This score stood until the first play of the second period when Leland Selby scored the first of his three touchdowns recorded this night.
Completing a six play, 61-yard drive, the sophomore running back raced in from five yards away to essentially give IA all the points required to win this playoff game. The score then quickly mushroomed to a 35-0 lead as the Colonels posted 21 unanswered points over the course of the next eight minutes of the game.
Following an eight play 59 yard drive which ended with Selby scoring from six yards away, a pair of Blue Devil lost fumbles offered new scoring opportunities for the Colonels.
It was IA senior linebacker Jacob Sepulvado falling on Tunica’s first fumble; and this subsequent 22-yard drive ended two plays later when Ashton Powell bulldozed his way six yards into the end zone.
Remarkably, on Tunica’s next offensive play, John Luther Selby fell on another Blue Devil fumble.
The IA offense made short work of this opportunity as only four plays were required to cover the 35 yards to paydirt. It was Leland Selby again posting the points as a huge hole in the right side of the offensive line enabled the speedster to run untouched to the goal line.
Offensively in this game, the Colonels rushed 40 times for 173 yards on the wet field.
Selby’s 16 carry, 52 yards paced this attack while Woods Toler (2 for 40 yards), Powell (5 for 30 yards), and Thomas Putnam (3 for 21 yards) made their contributions.
Through the air Putnam completed both of his first half passes for 27 yards while sophomore Cole Ferrell was successful with his pair of second half passes which accumulated another 17 yards of offense.
Grant Coleman’s 27-yard reception led all receivers in this contest.
Defensively, the Colonels limited the Blue Devils to only 68 yards of total offense in the game; an improvement over the negative 10 yards the Tunica Academy offense had accumulated during the first half of the football contest.
Leading this stiff IA resistance was John Luther Selby with one solo tackle, six assists, one sack, and one fumble recovery.
Zepponi also added five solo tackles and four assists to his pick six interception while Brayden Kimble’s three solo, five assist night of play led the balance of the IA defensive efforts.
