CHARLESTON -- Saturday night the North-South All Star Football Classic was composed of two teams that wouldn't back down.
But in the end it was the South's superior talent that backed the North down for a 24-14 victory.
The North paid little attention to the South's superior speed advantage early on, accounting for the game's first score on a long pass play.
Dustin Peters fired a 54-yard bomb to Jordan Griffin for a Bears touchdown with 3:53 remaining in the first quarter. The quick strike caught the South off guard, and had the North's confidence soaring.
But the North's momentum was quickly stymied by the South's hot pursuit offense. Engineered by a 35- yard pass to Capital's Tyrone Goard, the Cardinals finished the drive in the end zone. Mount View's Cordero High executed a flawless spin move to avoid the defender and tie the game at 7-7 as the first quarter drew to a close.
Woodrow Wilson's Marquel Ali was billed as the South's most dynamic athlete and he didn't disappoint. After several impressive runs, Ali took a short screen pass from Michael Scott in the second quarter and turned it into a 29-yard score at the 4:23 mark.
Ali had 66 yards on nine carries and 95 all-purpose yards in the first half. He finished the game with 92 yards rushing and 46 receiving.
Ali was named the game's Most Valuable Player.
"I just came out here and tried to do my best," Ali said. "It felt good to be back on the field again and I was happy with the way I played."
The North had several opportunities to answer the South's score, but the Cardinals took the 14-7 lead into halftime. The Bears most established drive in the second quarter stalled at the 18-yard line after the North failed to complete a fourth down and 20.
Before the final seconds ticked off the first half clock, a pushing and shoving match erupted. Several players were involved and coaches opted to forgo the final four seconds and send both squads to their locker rooms.
It was a dismal third quarter for both teams offensively. Defenses dominated as both units yielded no score for the third period.
The fireworks began to fly in the final quarter. After a 34-yard field goal by the South's Zack Markham, the North refused to fold.
Chris Martin hauled in short pass and broke loose down the left sidelines for a 45-yard touchdown, trimming the deficit to 17-14.
On paper the South was the big play team, but it marked the second time that a Bear took a swing pass the distance.
However, the South had too much talent, balance and team speed to overtake. Any time the North found a way to score the South found a way to answer.
The final answer was High sprinting 18 yards in the end zone for his second touchdown and a 24-14 South lead.
Huntington High's J.B. Lageman earned his respect on the field, by logging five tackles and a sack before he heads off to play at West Virginia.
"This win feels good and there was a tremendous amount of talent out here tonight," Lageman said. "I wish I could have performed a little better tonight, but it means more that we got the win."
Nitro's Marcos Valentine led all receivers with six catches for 157 yards. Jordan Griffin was the North's top receiver with six grabs for 116 yards.
NORTH 7 0 0 7 -- 14
SOUTH 7 7 0 10 -- 24
1st Quarter
N- Jordan Griffin 54 pass from Dustin Peters (Tyler Warner kick), 3:53.
S- Cordero High 6 run (Zack Markham kick), 12.9.
2nd quarter
S- Marquel Ali 29 pass from Scott (Markham kick), 4:23.
3rd quarter
No score
4th quarter
S-Markham 34-yard field goal, 11:54.
N-Chris Martin 45 pass from Dustin Peters (Warner kick), 10:12
S-Cordero High 18 run (Markham), 3:07.
N S
First downs 13 16
Total Net Yards 241 319
Rushes-yards 18-54 27-116
Passing yards 187 203
Comp-Att-Int 12-20-3 12-18-0
Fumbles-Lost 1-0 2-0
Penalties-Yards 3-20 7-49
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING -- NORTH: Chris Martin 3-5; Dustin Peters 5-17; Name Logan Martin 3-7; Lacob Lohri 3-4; Cody Hess 2-24; Shane lantz 2 (-3). South: Marquel Ali 13-92; Justin Gilkerson 2-5; Michael Scott 6 (-34); J.B. Lageman 1-6; Cordero High 3-31; Deion Spurlock 2-17.
PASSING -- NORTH: Dustin Peters 4-7-3, 87 yards; Shane Lantz 8-13-0 100 yards. South: Michael Scott 7-11, 116 yards; Nick Harris 5-8 87 yards.
RECEIVING -- NORTH: Logan Seabolt 4-35, Jordan Griffin 6-116; Jacob Carnahan 3-39; Chris Martin 2-52.. South: Tyrone Goard 3-59; Justin Gilkerson 1-4; Marcos Valentine 6-157; Ali 3-46; Deion Spurlock 3-30; T.J. Benners 1-3; Chuckie Erby 1-12.
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