Wi-Hi holds on to beat Queen Anne’s in Monday night thriller

SALISBURY, Md. – Wi-Hi football beat Queen Anne’s County High School 42-38 on Monday night in Salisbury.

Wi-Hi opened the scoring with a long touchdown pass from Landon Roache to Jamareon Stevens. Queen Anne’s responded with a long touchdown on a 4th down play that saw Colton Starlings drop a perfect ball to Jadereon Thompson for a 10-7 lead.

The back-and-forth scoring continued until Wi-Hi opened up a 28-16 halftime lead with back-to-back touchdowns from running back Kevin Thomas.

Both teams found offensive success in the 3rd quarter but the Tribe outpaced the Lions with touchdown passes from Roache to Jonathan Grady and Aaron Sadberry, extending their lead to 42-22.

Queen Anne’s began their comeback attempt by turning a defensive fumble recovery into a DeRodney Smith rushing touchdown on the final play of the 3rd quarter, making it 42-29.

A quick defensive stop led to one-play drive that resulted in Starlings hitting a wide open DeRodney Smith for a touchdown that cut the Wi-Hi lead to 42-36 with 10:36 remaining in the game.

Queen Anne’s had multiple red zone opportunities in the final minutes of the game.

First, the Tribe found a defensive stop on 4th & goal from the 6-yard line with just under four minutes to play, but Wi-Hi fumbled the snap on the following play, resulting in a safety that made the score 42-38.

The Lions got a good return on the ensuing kickoff, putting them in position to take the lead with a touchdown. With two minutes to play, Starlings took a shot to the endzone that was intercepted by Elijah Carroll, sealing the victory for Wi-Hi.

The Tribe move to 3-0 with the win. Their next game comes on Friday, September 26 at Cambridge-South Dorchester at 6 p.m.

Queen Anne’s falls to 2-1 with the loss. The Lions will play Stephen Decatur at home at 6 p.m. on Friday, September 26.