The Cartersville Purple Hurricanes dominated the Westminster Wildcats 37-22 Friday night in the opening round of the AAAA GHSA football playoffs.
Cartersville struck first in the opening quarter when Nate Russell hit A’darrian Taylor-Wilson with a 13-yard touchdown pass, giving the Canes an early 6-0 lead with 6:06 remaining. On the ensuing kickoff, Westminster fumbled the return after Cooper Melvin knocked the ball loose. Cartersville recovered at Westminster’s 16-yard line, setting up an opportunity to capitalize.
The Hurricanes methodically marched into the end zone, with Russell finishing the drive on a 5-yard touchdown run. Both defenses then locked in, trading stops for nearly 14 minutes as neither offense found its rhythm. Late in the second quarter, Russell broke through again, connecting with Brady Marchese for a 27-yard touchdown. Cartersville added a field goal with 11 seconds left in the half, seemingly heading into the break with a commanding 23-0 lead.
However, Westminster’s special teams stumbled once more. Jordyn Woods recovered another Wildcat mishap, setting Cartersville up in the red zone. The Hurricanes capitalized with a bold fake field goal as Andrew Purdy found Grayson Villar for a touchdown, extending the lead to 30-0 just before halftime.
The third quarter unfolded as a defensive standoff, but Westminster finally broke through, scoring their first touchdown as the period ended to cut the deficit.
Momentum seemed to shift early in the fourth quarter when Cartersville suffered a special teams error of its own. Westminster capitalized on the short field, narrowing the gap to 30-14.
Cartersville quickly responded with a touchdown pass from Russell to Cayden Aleman. Westminster refused to back down, answering with a 68-yard touchdown pass and a successful two-point conversion, pulling within 15 points with just over four minutes to play.
The Hurricanes held firm, controlling the clock with crucial first downs to secure the win in victory formation.
Cartersville advances to host the Starr’s Mill Panthers next Friday night at Weinman Stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m.