LYNCHBURG — Missed opportunities and untimely turnovers plagued the Lafayette (13-1) football team during a 25-19 loss to Magna Vista in the Virginia High School League Group 3A State Championship game on Saturday.
The Rams turned the ball over three times, including a costly fumble by reserve quarterback Cheyton Pine in the waning moments of the game. Pine was forced into the starting role after starting quarterback Brendan McGinty injured his wrist in the third quarter of last week’s playoff game.
“Cheyton gave it everything he got,” said McGinty, who played wing back during the game. “He played the whole game and did what he could for the team.”
Lafayette leaned heavily on the run game early, especially on the first scoring drive of the game. The Rams capped off the 13-play, 54-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown run by John Douglass, which put the Rams up 7-0. The drive consisted of 12 runs and a single pass attempt.
Magna Vista (13-1) answered with 9:10 left in the second after T’Mahdae Penn hauled in a 23-yard pass from Shoalin McGuire. A missed extra point by the Warriors allowed Lafayette to carry a 7-6 lead into halftime.
One of the biggest missed opportunities of the day for Lafayette came with 2:34 left in the first half. A Magna Vista punt did not cross the line of scrimmage, which gave Lafayette the ball at the Magna Vista 23-yard line. The Rams squandered excellent field position by picking up three yards before turning the ball over on downs.
“There were times we stopped ourselves,” Lafayette coach Andy Linn said. “We fumbled and did some things. I don’t want to take anything away from their defense. Their defense played great.”
The Magna Vista offense, specifically Jacqez Hairston, woke up in the second half. Hairston gave Magna Vista a 12-7 lead with 6:13 in the third quarter after busting off an 83-yard run, which was highlighted by a violent block by Penn on Lafayette defensive back Tyreke Graham.
“Number two got away a couple of times and that was pretty much the difference in the football game,” Linn said.
The Rams struggled to contain the Magna Vista rushing attack, allowing 219 rushing yards in the second half, 183 coming from Hairston. McGuire extended the Magna Vista lead to 18-7 after running into the end zone from four yards out.
Trailing in the fourth quarter, the Rams turned to the passing game for a spark. Pine connected with Tyreke Graham for a 47-yard touchdown pass that brought Lafayette within five points.
Magna Vista answered on the next possession, putting together an eight-play, 83-yard touchdown drive. On the game-winning score, Hairston escaped containment and scampered for his second long touchdown of the half, this time for 48 yards, to put the Warriors up 25-13.
A poor Magna Vista kickoff gave Lafayette the ball just beyond midfield. Wing back Caleb Kraegenbrink completed a 33-yard pass to Trent Neville, which set up Douglass for his second rushing touchdown of the next play from six yards out.
The Lafayette defense earned the offense one more possession with 1:59 left and no timeouts, but the Warriors recovered a fumble on the first play of the drive and were able to run out the clock to clinch their first state championship in football.
“I thought we were definitely going to go down the field and punch it in there,” captain defensive lineman Matt Hummel said. “I thought we had the momentum.”
The loss marks the third time Lafayette has finished as runner-ups in the state playoffs. The Rams last won a championship in 2001.
Magna Vista 25, Lafayette 19
Lafayette — 7 0 0 12 — 19
Magna Vista — 0 6 6 13 — 25
First Quarter
LHS – Douglass 7 run (Horne kick) 7-0
Second Quarter
MV – Penn 23 pass from McGuire (Kick failed) 7-6
Third Quarter
MV – J. Hairston 83 run (Pass failed) 7-12
Fourth Quarter
MV – McGuire 4 run (Pass failed) 7-18
LHS – Graham 47 pass from Pine (Pass failed) 13-18
MV – Hairston 48 run (Evans kick) 13-25
LHS – Douglass 6 run (Kick failed) 19-25
Totals
Lafayette; Magna Vista
First downs: 11; 17
Rushes-yards: 41-121; 37-230
Passing yards: 126; 167
Comp-att-int: 14-6-1; 19-14-0
Penalties-yards: 7-45; 1-5
Fumbles-lost: 2-2; 1-1
Individual Statistics
Lafayette
John Douglass 15 car, 46 yards, 2 TD
Cheyton Pine 5-13, 93 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Matt Hummel 10 tackles, .5 TFL
Magna Vista
Jacqez Hairston 28 car, 197 yards, 2 TD
Shoalin McGuire 14-19, 167 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 6 car, 36 yards, 1 TD
T’Mahdae Penn 6 rec, 93 yards, 1 TD
