The Pine Tree Pirates kept their momentum rolling Friday night, delivering a strong all-around performance to defeat the Henderson Lions 49-21 in District 9-4A Division I action at Lion Stadium. With the win, Pine Tree improved to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in district play, using a balanced offense and key defensive stops to pull away in the second half.
Quarterback Colton Croft led the way for the Pirates, throwing for 238 yards while the running back duo of Roger Attaway and Ja’Karius Timmons combined for over 175 rushing yards. The offense totaled 456 yards from scrimmage, keeping the Lions on their heels throughout the night.
Pine Tree struck first, taking a 3-0 lead before reaching into the Bachman bag of tricks. On a fourth-and-7 from the Henderson 39, Croft threw a quick pass to Bosston Johnson, who launched a double pass deep to Rashaad Wofford for a 39-yard touchdown, extending the lead to 10-0. Henderson answered behind star running back Jesstin Starling, who carried the Lions downfield and punched in a three-yard score to cut the lead to 10-7.
Croft quickly responded, connecting with Ashton Valentine for a 26-yard touchdown, followed by a three-yard scoring run from Timmons after a key defensive takeaway by Dalan Montgomery, putting Pine Tree ahead 24-7. Henderson rallied late in the half, but a Julian Ibarra 25-yard field goal gave the Pirates a 27-14 advantage at the break.
In the second half, Henderson closed the gap to 27-21 on a 40-yard touchdown run, but the Pirates took control from there. Attaway muscled in a one-yard touchdown to push the lead back to two scores, then the Pine Tree defense made the play of the night, Montgomery and Anthony Anderson stuffed Starling on fourth-and-1, flipping the momentum.
Moments later, Montgomery broke multiple tackles on a determined 15-yard touchdown run to make it 42-21 early in the fourth quarter. From there, the Pirate defense slammed the door, with Smith recording a key sack to end Henderson’s last hurrah. A late 56-yard, 12-play drive capped by a Calvin Casey two-yard touchdown run sealed the 49-21 win.
The victory marks another strong step forward for Coach Jason Bachman’s squad, showcasing Pine Tree’s offensive creativity and defensive toughness. Pine Tree returns home next week to host Chapel Hill, while Henderson heads into its bye week.
