Ayden-Grifton fell behind by 15 points in the first quarter of this Carolina Conference football game but rallied by scoring 46 unanswered points to earn a share of the league championship on Friday night, defeating North Johnston 52-28.
At the 2:53 mark of the first quarter, the Chargers trailed 21-6. However, Ayden-Grifton (8-3, 4-1 Carolina) pecked away and took the lead for good before the game reached halftime. Matt Dougherty completed a 28-yard touchdown pass to Keith Jones with 1:13 left in the second quarter, pushing the Chargers ahead 22-21.
North Johnston fumbled the football away after a quarterback sack, and Ayden-Grifton scored one more time thanks to the passing ability of Dougherty. Courtney Fuller pulled in a 36-yard TD reception for one of his six catches that totaled 114 yards.
The Chargers ran the ball quite well, too, amassing 314 yards rushing. Perseus Williams rushed 13 times for 143 yards and J.D. Strickland added 113 yards on 18 carries.
Dougherty finished 13-of-16 passing for 173 yards.
Despite the convincing victory, Ayden-Grifton's luck wasn't all that great after the ballgame. The Chargers, North Johnston and North Duplin all finished with one loss in the conference, leading to a draw for seeding purposes for the NCHSAA playoffs. North Johnston received the No. 1 seed, followed by Ayden-Grifton and North Duplin.
