For something that hadn’t happened in 17 years, it makes sense that it took a little extra time Friday night.
The Charlotte Christian defense had kept Bryce Sain ’22 bottled-up for much of the evening. Christ School’s primary rusher and his blockers kept plugging away on Senior Night. Needing a touchdown to win in overtime, the Greenies handed off the ball twice to Bryce – the second being a 2-yard carry that led them to a long-awaited 34-31 victory.
Throw out the records. Charlotte Christian (3-5) is a four-time defending state champion in NCISAA football and the Greenies (3-4) hadn’t beaten the Knights since 2004. And there had been plenty of heartache in those 17 years, including state-championship game losses in 2018 and 2019.
First-year coach Chad Walker told his players afterwards that he knew it would take a complete game to knock off Charlotte Christian and that he was excited about the team’s momentum heading into Asheville School Week.
There are 11 seniors on Christ School’s roster who were honored prior to Friday's kickoff – Bryce, Trey Wagner ’22, Gabe Berardi ’22, A.J. Simpkins ’22, Jake Regan ’22, A.J. Jacobs ’22, Brady Ioannidis ’22, Jacob Halfacre ’22, Eli Brasher ’22, Charlie Bednar ’22, and Wesley Thomas ’22.
Many of those names figured into the outcome.
With 1:14 left in regulation, Bryce tied the game at 28-28 by catching a short pass from A.J., then using a wicked stiff arm to turn the reception into a 15-yard touchdown. Earlier in the game, A.J. connected with Josh Harrison ’24 (50 yards) and Zack Myers ’24 (37 yards) for touchdowns.
Christ School’s first touchdown involved a little trickery.
Cayden Jones ’24, who picked up a scholarship offer from third-ranked Oklahoma on Thursday, was inserted at quarterback for a fourth down, goal-line situation. Cayden faked a run and then threw a jump pass to Gabe in the corner of the end zone.
Christ School never had the lead until the very end. Matthew Hammel '23 made all four of his extra-point attempts.
The Greenies can now shift their focus to Asheville School for next week’s 95th edition of “The Game.”
Christ School is going for 10 straight wins, something neither team has ever been able to accomplish in the oldest high school football rivalry in the Carolinas. The Greenies set a record for margin of victory in last year’s 63-7 blowout. Next week's game is October 30 at Asheville School with a 1:30 p.m. kickoff.
