HAMPTON — Phoebus’ four-year reign as a state champion will last at least another week.
The No. 4-seeded Phantoms overcame an early 14-point deficit, then survived a late rally to edge No. 5 Churchland 26-21 in the Class 4 Region A quarterfinals on Saturday at Darling Stadium. The issue was not decided until the final seconds, when freshman Jayden Marbury turned back a late Churchland drive to the Phantoms’ 12 by intercepting a fourth-down pass in the end zone.
It was the culmination of a torrid final minute. The Truckers (7-4) drove to the Phoebus 22, where quarterback Logan Wynne (173 yards passing) escaped a furious Phantoms rush only to overthrow a wide-open receiver in the end zone. The Truckers got a final chance from the 12 after a Phoebus hold, but Marbury dashed their hopes with a pick.
“That felt great, knowing that I didn’t do it just for me,” Marbury said. “I did it for this team, this school and this coaching staff.”
By doing so, the Phantoms (7-3) move into the region semifinals against archrival No. 1 Hampton (10-1) at noon Saturday at Darling Stadium. It will take much of the week to recover from Saturday’s excitement.
The underdog Truckers seized early control with an 11-play, 89-yard touchdown drive. Elijah Salmon (17 carries, 104 yards) did most of the work moving the Truckers downfield. Wynne’s 19-yard touchdown pass to Dereon Ripley gave Churchland a 7-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter.
Three plays after Larry Hurdle returned an interception 36 yards to the Phoebus 3, the Truckers led 14-0 on Salmon’s 2-yard touchdown run. Unfazed, the Phantoms patiently drove 65 yards in 10 plays, with Tyree Diggs (160 yards rushing, three TDs) carrying eight times for 42 yards. His 5-yard touchdown run pulled the Phantoms to within 14-6 late in the first half.
Josh Blackwell returned the second-half kickoff 78 yards for a touchdown to pull the Phantoms — who missed the two-point conversion — to within 14-12. Aided by Churchland’s staggering 20 penalties for 202 yards, the Phantoms surged.
“That definitely brought some fire, some energy when we were down,” Blackwell said of his return. “That was a good moment. I haven’t had a bigger one.”
Late in the third quarter, the Phantoms mounted an 80-yard touchdown drive ignited by Jayden Javier’s 39-yard gain with an over-the-shoulder catch of pass from Maurikus Banks. That paved the way for Diggs’ 4-yard touchdown run that put Phoebus ahead 19-14 in the final minute of the third quarter, but his best was yet to come.
Diggs broke one tackle, then spun from another en route to a 58-yard touchdown run that pushed the Phantoms’ lead to 26-14 with 10:49 remaining in the fourth quarter.
“I trusted my line and my ability to break tackles,” Diggs said. “That’s what I’ve been trained to do.”
The Truckers found late energy. Floyd Logan V made a beautiful catch of Wynne’s pass against tight coverage, streaking 43 yards to a touchdown to make it 26-21 with 3:13 left.
Wynne’s 27-yard completion to Logan gave the Truckers late hopes of an upset. Marbury’s interception ended them.
“In the moment, you’re just trying to keep your poise,” Blunt said. “When you look back on it, you enjoy it because those are the games that you remember when they come down to the wire like that.”
