By Austin Bruce

VALDOSTA — The Lowndes Vikings (7-1, 2-1 Region 1-6A) took another step towards making the playoffs Friday night, grounding a high-powered Camden County offensive attack on their way to a 33-7 win.

The Wildcats (6-2, 1-2 Region 1-6A), which came into the game averaging a staggering 48.1 points per game, never could get rolling against a vaunted Viking defense, mustering just 217 yards of offense.

Lowndes head coach Adam Carter kept things pretty simple in discussing his team’s defensive gameplan, noting the offensive talent Camden County had.

“They have some really good offensive skill guys,” Carter said. “They’ve got a tight end that’s going to Georgia, another Division I kid at receiver, and some good running backs that are top in the region in rushing. We knew it was going to be tough. We just tried to take away some of the stuff they had showed on film that they did well and tried to make them go to something else.”

The Vikings set the tone early following some trickery from the Wildcats on the opening kickoff that put Camden County in good field position by getting a quick stop.

The Vikings offense got off to a slow start of their own though, stalling out in plus territory and having a special teams miscue via a nine yard punt.

However, the Wildcats’ second drive with good field position ended in disaster. Facing a fourth-and-five in no man’s land and looking to convert, quarterback Parks Riendeau was instead picked off by senior defensive back Landen Wright, who returned the interception deep into Camden territory before being stopped.

That turnover would eventually be cashed in for points as senior do-it-all quarterback Marvis Parrish capped the short drive with a one-yard touchdown run.

The Vikings continued to dominate the early phases of the game, but special teams continued to plague the team throughout the night. In all, the Vikings missed or had kicks blocked three times in the game, including a partially blocked 47-yard field goal try from junior kicker Aiden Andrews early in the second quarter.

Camden County also ripped off a handful of good returns as the Vikings struggled to tackle in the open field.

Carter expressed his disappointment with his team’s performance in the third phase of the game.

“We have not done that all season,” Carter said. “Kudos to their return guy. He’s been doing that to everybody all year, and he’s a good player. On kickoff, we had made some changes to try to get a little bit more speed out there, but then we just didn’t tackle. The field goal stuff is inexcusable. I’ve never in my career seen anything like that, so we’ll go back to the drawing board and try to fix that.”

The Vikings began to take control of the game late in the first half as Parrish continued to be a force on the ground. Parrish scored twice in the final three minutes of the half to complete the hat trick and give Lowndes a 20-0 halftime lead.

Parrish’s takeover continued into the second half as he recorded his fourth touchdown of the night. This time, it was the quarterback-to-quarterback connection as sophomore quarterback Jayce Johnson found Parrish for a 46-yard catch-and-run for the score.

In addition to his four total touchdowns, Parrish also had over 200 all-purpose yards in the game, rushing for 93 yards and recording 108 yards receiving on just five catches.

“It’s been there every week I feel like,” Carter said of Parrish’s impact on the game. “He’s just a consistent guy. He shows up to work every day. He puts in the work. He puts in the time. The people out here on the field get to see him run around, but there’s a lot of work that that young man does.”

The Vikings’ final scoring drive of the night proved to be the dagger for the Wildcats. The Vikings converted a pair of fourth downs in the drive before senior running back Aalim Brown rumbled in for a two-yard touchdown run.

Camden County would finally find paydirt on the ensuing drive, but it was all for naught as Lowndes salted away the game.

The win proved to be a critical one in what is now a very intense race for the region crown. Following Friday’s results, there is now a four-way tie for first place in the region with just two weeks to play as the Vikings, along with Valdosta, Richmond Hill, and Colquitt County, all sit at 2-1 in region play.

For Carter though, Friday’s win was not just about staying alive for the region championship.

“If you can control your own destiny, there’s not much more you can ask for,” Carter said. “To be sitting here at 2-1 in the region and a chance to get in is the biggest thing. I want to win the region championship as bad as everyone else does. We just want to play Week 11.”

UP NEXT

Lowndes will be back at home for another big region showdown against the Richmond Hill Wildcats (7-1, 2-1 Region 1-6A) on Oct. 25 at 8 p.m.