BERLIN- The Stephen Decatur varsity football team’s first-ever foray into the state Class 3A playoffs ended on a down note last Friday as the Seahawks fell to host Fallston, 31-6, in the region semifinals.
Decatur entered the state playoff match-up with Fallston on a mini-roll, having won three straight to finish the regular season at 7-3 and earn a number-three seed in the state’s Class 3A east region tourney. However, a key injury to quarterback Tim Donelly, who broke his hand in the second half, and likely the left over effects of a long bus ride from Berlin to Fallston, contributed to the Seahawks’ downfall in the playoffs last week.
Fallston, the two-seed in the tourney, started the game with a 50-yard kick-off return deep into Decatur territory to set the tone early. The Cougars drove to the Decatur 10, but the defense stiffened and forced a field goal as Fallston took the early 3-0 lead. Fallston scored a touchdown on its next possession to extend the lead to 9-0, and added another score just before the half to take a 17-0 lead into intermission.
Decatur hung in there with the Cougars, scoring a touchdown of its own in the third quarter to cut the lead to 17-6 with a lot of time left, but that was as close as the Seahawks would get. Fallston finished the night with two more touchdowns on long runs of 33 yards and 21 yards to round out the scoring and advance with the 31-6 win.
Regardless of the outcome, it was a great season for Decatur, which finished with a 7-4 overall record and reached the state playoffs for the first time since being moved up to the state’s Class 3A last year because of increased enrollment figures.