Reigning state champion Southern Durham won the battle of the unbeatens Friday night in Hillsborough, dealing Orange its first loss of the season 27-23, on its way to the Big Eight conference championship.
It took a furious finish for the Spartans to get past the inspired Panthers who came out strong, building a 23-14 lead in the fourth quarter. Panther head coach Pat Moser must be getting tired of facing the Spartans.
The Spartans (11-0, 7-0 Big 8) beat Orange (10-1, 6-1) for the third straight time since the start of the Big Eight last season. In fact, Orange hasn’t lost to any other opponent since 2012. Southern also ended Orange’s unbeaten season in the regular-season finale last year 55-41 and eliminated Orange in the third round of the playoffs 31-24.
Southern used a successful onside kick in the fourth quarter to score two touchdowns and overcome a 23-14 deficit. Star senior quarterback Kendall Hinton scored the go-ahead 15-yard touchdown run with 1:54 left.
In other Big Eight action Friday night, Northwood (9-2, 5-2) claimed a 31-6 win over Cardinal Gibbons (6-5, 3-4) and Chapel Hill (8-3, 4-3) dispatched Cedar Ridge (4-7, 2-5) 42-30.
The 3-AA state playoff brackets will be released this weekend. The Big 8 figures to play a starring role in the tournament action with at least four teams guaranteed slots.
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