By Brandon Park
Staff Writer

Defense wins championships.

And in a league where points can pile up like leaves in the fall, the Pups needed a strong defensive perfomance last Wednesday, as they defeated Carver Middle School 7-6.

With the win, the Pups earned an opportunity to play in the Piedmont Athletic Conference championship against rival Greene County.

“Once again, our defense rose to the challenge,” Head Coach Stacy Webb said. “We made several key stops at critical times all game long.”

None more critical than a goal line stand during a two-point conversion attempt with only seconds left in the game.

With the Pups up 7-0 with only 1:13 to play, Carver drove down field and punched the ball across the goal line to pull within one point.

Carver coaches decided to go for the win, and with 32 seconds left, a sweep to the right was stopped short of the endzone by the Pups defense. Morgan took over after an unsuccessful onside kick and ran the clock to zero.

Both teams had trouble moving the ball for much of the game.

The Pups took the lead late in the first half when a halfback pass from Trent Hawk was pulled in by a leaping Davon Gibbs.

A successful extra point proved to be the difference.

When talking about the championship game against Greene, Webb said “We will stick to the same plan, line up and play smashmouth football. We have to minimize our turnovers and keep their offense off the field. Once again, we need a strong performance from our defense. The kids are ready and seem to be taking this run very seriously. “