Prattville Lions top Austin High 7-6, advance to Quarterfinals

Scott Nickerson

Elmore Autauga News

The Prattville Lions Flag Football team defeated previously unbeaten Austin High School, 7-6, in the 2nd Round of the Class 6A-7A playoffs to advance to the quarterfinals for the third consecutive season.

“It feels awesome (to lead the Lions to their third straight appearance in the Elite 8),” said Head Coach Mike Battle. “It just shows the hard work that was put in the offseason and early on in the season. There were lots of unknowns during the off-season with our quarterback graduating, who played a huge role in the pass and run game in the offense. But Junior Quarterback Abby Kelley stepped in and has distributed the ball very well. And our defense has played extremely well this year.”

A gauntlet of tough regular-season matchups against teams like Central Phenix City, Auburn, Vestavia, Enterprise, Spain Park, and Catholic has prepared the Lions for the postseason run. The Lions have only allowed one touchdown through the first two rounds of the Class 6A-7A playoffs. In the first round, Prattville shut out Hueytown 33-0 before defeating Austin 7-6 in the 2nd round.

“So far through the playoffs, what has impressed me has been how well we have accepted the challenge to go out and compete and overcome small moments of adversity. We had times throughout the regular season where we didn’t do that. So seeing the growth of the team in that aspect has definitely impressed me,” said Coach Battle.

To advance to the Final Four, the Lions will have to win on the road against Spain Park, a team that beat them earlier in the year, 14-7. In their first two playoff games, Spain Park has not allowed a single point, defeating Gardendale 34-0 and Oxford 14-0.

“Spain Park is a very well-coached team. We played them early on, and it was very close, but they are athletic on both sides of the ball. We will have to get stops on defense in critical situations. They will make us pay if we get out of position or miss a flag pull. Defense is going to be the key to us winning this game,” said Coach Battle.

Prattville’s record sits at 15-7 on the season. The quarterfinal matchup against Spain Park will take place on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m., with the winner advancing to the Class 6A-7A Final Four.