Photo By Michael Alexander

When Blessed Trinity and Greater Atlanta Christian School faced each other Oct. 3, it was just a matter of whose streak was going to come to a halt, the 4-0 one of Blessed Trinity or the 0-4 one of Greater Atlanta Christian. In the end Blessed Trinity was upset by a fiercely competitive Greater Atlanta Christian squad 31-28. Blessed Trinity scored first on a 2-yard run by running back Sam Burkhalter, and the team took an early 7-0 lead, which stood until Greater Atlanta Christian kicked a field goal with 8:27 left in the second quarter. With 3:30 left in the quarter Blessed Trinity’s Jake Skole returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown and the team went up 14-3. Greater Atlanta Christian senior quarterback Colton Chapple threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mark Knauss to bring them within four points (14-10) by halftime.

The second half was a tug-of-war of leads. Greater Atlanta Christian took its first lead (17-14) of the game with 5:38 remaining in the third quarter after fullback Blake Southerland ran it in from 1 yard out. It was the first time Blessed Trinity had trailed in a game since they played Oconee County on Aug. 29. Less than a minute later Blessed Trinity regained the lead as quarterback Kohl Hegetschweiler threw a pass to Skole, who scampered 52 yards for the touchdown. With 2:11 remaining in the third quarter, Greater Atlanta Christian’s Julian Horton was on the receiving end of a 45-yard touchdown pass from Chapple to give them a 24-21 advantage, which is how the quarter ended.

Blessed Trinity’s defense forced Greater Atlanta Christian to punt the ball away after its first series of the fourth quarter. With 9:59 left in the game Burkhalter ran for a 37-yard touchdown, his second of the night. Greater Atlanta Christian was able to drive down field to the 5-yard line, set up by a long pass from Chapple to Horton. From there Southerland ran in behind his offensive line for what would be the game-winning touchdown. The Blessed Trinity offense misfired on its next possession, but its defense forced Greater Atlanta Christian to give up the ball after senior defensive back Mitchell Smith led the charge in stopping tailback Stephen Atwater from making a first down on a fourth-down attempt. With 1:37 left on the game clock Blessed Trinity took over on its own 11-yard line, but was unable to advance the ball for another score.

Blessed Trinity running back Sam Burkhalter (#44) had 10 carries for 112 yards and two touchdowns in the Oct. 3 game against Greater Atlanta Christian School. Blessed Trinity’s 31-28 loss knocked them from the ranks of the undefeated. Photo By Michael Alexander

When asked what the team took away from the loss, Hegetschweiler said, “As a team we learned that there are things we need to still work on together. Coach Turner told us to keep our heads up and not to get down. He said we have plenty of big games left in our schedule. We just need to come out prepared and ready for Lovett.” Blessed Trinity (4-1) takes on The Lovett School (4-2) on Lovett’s homecoming weekend Friday, Oct. 10.

Our Lady of Mercy High School, Fairburn, lost a close game to Fellowship Christian School, Roswell, 37-33, Oct. 3. After losing the past two years to Fellowship Christian by scores of 21 and 25 points, respectively, Mercy kept the margin of loss to four points. Mercy also surpassed its scoring production against Fellowship Christian compared to all of their past meetings. Running back Jarrell Bankhead led the team in rushing with 21 carries for 100 yards. Bankhead scored two rushing and two receiving touchdowns on the night, which brings his total to 10 for the season. Quarterback William Pearl also rushed for 66 yards and completed 62 percent of his passes for 107 yards with one interception and two touchdowns. Mercy (1-4) plays Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy (0-5) on homecoming Friday, Oct. 10.

Pinecrest Academy, Cumming, had its first win over GISA-AAA competition Oct. 3 before a home crowd by defeating Trinity Christian School, Dublin, 35-21. Junior quarterback Zach Wilson had a career passing night as he was 12 of 19 for 179 yards. He was also the game’s leading rusher with 88 yards on 14 carries. Junior fullback Michael Cassandra also had 62 yards on 15 carries and two touchdowns. The Pinecrest defense only gave up 29 yards in the second half of the game. Pinecrest (3-2-1) begins region play Friday, Oct. 10, as the team faces Atlanta’s Mount Vernon Presbyterian School (2-4) for homecoming.

St. Pius X High School, Atlanta, cruised to 38-8 victory over North Atlanta High School Oct. 3 to extend its record to 6-0. Junior fullback Cole Moon led the offense with 34 carries for 195 yards and four touchdowns. Junior linebacker Robert Lucisano anchored the defense with 12 tackles. St. Pius is idle until taking on Washington High School (4-2), Atlanta, at Grady High School Stadium Friday, Oct. 17.