Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Holmes walked away with it. They snuck past the North Duplin Rebels with a 34-28 win on Friday. The victory almost wasn't to be: the Aces were down 14-0 in the second quarter.
Mason Byrum threw for 70 yards and one touchdown. Jamarion Basnight was his top target, picking up 38 receiving yards and one score. On the ground, DJ Sutton rushed for 90 yards and a pair of TDs on only six carries.
When it comes to explaining why North Duplin lost, don't look at Carell Phillips. Despite the final result, he rushed for 171 yards and a pair of scores, and also caught one TD. Phillips' rushing production has been exceptional as that marked his sixth straight game with at least 132 rushing yards. Ben Kelly was in the mix as well, providing North Duplin with one touchdown.
Aces
| 11/21/25 @ North Duplin | 34-28 |
| 11/14/25 vs Perquimans | 55-16 |
| 10/30/25 @ Manteo | 43-7 |
| 10/24/25 vs Perquimans | 59-21 |
| 10/17/25 vs Bertie | 56-30 |
| + 3 more games |
The win (which was Holmes' eighth in a row) raised their record to 8-4. The team dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 32.9 points. As for North Duplin, they moved to 10-2 with that loss, which also ended their six-game winning streak.
Holmes didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next game, a 40-14 defeat against Warren County on the 28th. North Duplin does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
