Class AAA playoffs: Falcons still soaring

ATLANTA -- At this point, who would bet against Flowery Branch doing it all over again?

The fourth-seeded Falcons picked up their second straight playoff win on Friday night and continued picking up postseason steam, holding off Grady 35-21 in Atlanta.

"We're peaking at the right time and getting hot," Flowery Branch coach Lee Shaw said.

Last season, the Falcons peak took them to the Class AAA championship game. This season, they've at least reached the Class AAA quarterfinals, where they will travel to take on Carver, Columbus (which defeated Woodward 33-7 on Friday).

After winning six straight road postseason games, top-seeded Carver (11-1) would do well to be wary of Flowery Branch (9-3).

"We're playing so much better than we were early on in the season," Shaw said. "We're starting to hit our stride... here we go again."

The Falcons scored 14 straight points in the first half and responded twice when the Grey Knights (10-2) pulled within a touchdown.

"We came back and hit adversity in the mouth a couple of times tonight," Shaw said.

Flowery Branch rolled up 399 yards of offense, including 215 through the air, as quarterback Connor Shaw finished 17 of 24 with two touchdowns and interception. Shaw also led the Falcons' rushing attack with 85 yards on 13 carries, while Imani Cross added 75 yards and two scores on 19 carries.

Grady managed 278 yards of offense, including 184 through the air. But the Grey Knights were held to almost zero total yards in the first quarter, as the Falcons jumped ahead to a 14-0 advantage.

Shaw found Robbie Boudreau for the game's first score on a 16-yard completion with just 22 seconds left in the opening quarter.

Then it was Flowery Branch's defense stepping up, pouncing on a muffed punt snap from Grady. Freshman Jacob Allen returned it for a touchdown and a 14-0 advantage with 9:34 left in the second quarter.

Grady wouldn't fade easily, however, and the Grey Knights defense sparked their first score when Damian Swann picked off Shaw near his own goal line and returned it to Flowery Branch territory. Ramel Crenshaw scored from three yards out to make the halftime score 14-7.

Yet the Falcons regained control just after the interval, as Rodney Young hauled in one of his nine catches for the game, this one for an 18-yard score and a 21-7 advantage. Young finished with 110 yards receiving. Cross extended Flowery Branch's advantage to 28-7 with 6:34 left in the third quarter, scoring on a 14-yard run.

Yet again Grady, responded.

This time, the Grey Knights scored on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Treveon Albert to Brandon Proctor with 4:44 left in the third quarter. Marcus Caffey then scored on a two-yard run with 9:03 left in the fourth quarter to pull within 28-21.

But Flowery Branch wasn't to be denied, as Cross put the game out of reach with a 17-yard touchdown run with 4:18 to play.