7-ON-7 TOURNEY
Shiloh Christian downs Robinson at Fountain Lake
FOUNTAIN LAKE — Newcomer Shiloh Christian walked away with the title as the Saints defeated Joe T. Robinson, 37-19, in the finals of the Allen Tillery Auto/Fountain Lake 7-on-7 Tournament Friday afternoon at Allen Tillery Field.
The Saints won an overtime victory over host Fountain Lake in the semifinals after having defeated Robinson’s junior varsity squad, 30-2, in the quarterfinals.
“I think any time you really have to work to finish a game and finish with a W, it gives you an edge,” said Shiloh Christian head coach Jeff Conaway. “It builds confidence, and that was the case today.”
The Senators got on the scoreboard first in the final, taking a 9-0 lead after their first possession when Grayson Tackett found P.J. Hall on a 24-yard pass, but Shiloh Christian came back to take a 16-9 lead at the break as Eli Reece found Blake Thompson and Jarrett Ross for touchdown passes with a conversion connection to Thompson in the final possession of the half.
The Saints rolled to a 27-9 lead early in the second half with a pair of stops and a 40-yard touchdown pass from Reece to Ross.
Robinson pulled within 27-19 after a 40-yard TD of their own as Tackett found Hall. The Saints secured the win on their next possession as Reece found Ross on a 15-yard pass. Another stop by the Saints set the final.
“It is an accomplishment for several reasons,” Conaway said. “No. 1, it’s early; it’s June 1. No. 2, it’s really hot. For our guys to come out and play in this kind of heat early and not flinch, I felt like was good for our confidence and our off-season program.
“We pretty much proved that the training we’ve been doing has definitely been working, and we’re in good shape. We can build on this. Having success early sets up for a really productive summer.”
Fountain Lake head coach J.D. Plumlee said was pleased with his teams’ efforts, his varsity squad staying undefeated until the loss to Shiloh Christian in the semifinals. After going 4-0 in pool play, the varsity team met the junior varsity squad in the quarterfinals.
“We lost one game, it was to Shiloh
Christian in the semifinals in overtime,” he said. “We held it a second late. Hats off to Shiloh Christian for coming down here and battling through. They lost early in pool play and fought their way back and beat a very, very good, athletic Joe T. Robinson in the finals.”
The Cobras junior varsity team failed to win a game in pool play, facing three varsity squads and the Little Rock Central junior varsity team, before defeating Poyen in the first game of bracket play.
Plumlee said was impressed with the level of competition that all of the teams brought to the tournament.
“I’m excited that Little Rock Central came,” he said. “Coach Kent Laster, the new coach there, brought them over here, and he’s done a great job in a short time he’s been there. I look for them to be very successful in the future when he gets his culture in there. They’re going to come back next year.
“Lake Hamilton brought two teams and competed. Poyen came and competed all day. Our JV bunch doesn’t win a game in pool play and comes out and wins the first round in the tournament. They got better every snap. Shiloh Christian came all the way down and spent the night last night. They’re really good, and their coaching staff does an incredible job. … Obviously, we all know about Joe T., just super athletic, and there’s no doubt they’ll be in the semis or finals again next year.”
Another newcomer to this year’s tournament, Little Rock Central, had a productive day at the event.
“I really appreciate Fountain Lake having us,” said new Tigers head coach Kent Laster, who replaced Ellis “Scooter” Register earlier this year after Register’s retirement from 43 years of coaching. “It was good competition; we had Shiloh Christian, Fountain Lake, Lake Hamilton, Robinson. We really appreciate them having us.”
The Tigers went 2-2 with their varsity squad and 1-4 with the junior varsity team. Little Rock Central fell to Joe T. Robinson, 34-6, in the semifinal after they felled Lake Hamilton in the quarterfinals.
“It was good competition,” Laster said. “It was my first time with our guys in a competition setting, and I think we won half of them. I’m proud of them. Not that long ago, we were installing and putting things in a couple weeks ago, and now our kids are out here competing against teams that have gone through a whole season together if not many more seasons. I’m proud of them.”
Plumlee said he was pleased with the way the tournament turned out, despite the excessive heat.
“I thought went extremely well,” he said. “I thought all the teams and athletes fought through the heat. We checked at 11 o’clock, and the turf out here was already 130 (degrees). The kids did great; the coaches did great keeping the kids hydrated all day.”
Conaway agreed with Plumlee, noting he was happy to see good competition this early.
“We always enjoy the good competition,” Conaway said. “The thing we like about this one is it’s so early. Here we are, June 1, and we’re getting good competition and good quality reps early in the summer. We feel like that’s going to be an advantage for us to build through the next few weeks in the summer.”