FERRIDAY — With a spot in the MPSA Class A South State playoffs already clinched, Huntington didn’t have anything to play for when it hosted Class AA Columbia Academy Friday night.

However, a win over a school from a higher classification — even one that has struggled this season and is not going to the playoffs itself — would give the Hounds a big boost as postseason action grows near.

Huntington trailed by 10 points early in the third quarter before rallying for a 30-26 win over a Columbia Academy team that played a lot better than its 3-7 record going into the game would indicate.

After Joey Roberts threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Andreas Swanson with 8:51 left in the ball game that gave the Hounds the four-point lead, the Cougars still had one last chance. But on their final drive, Brad Thibadeaux came up with a big sack on 3rd and 6. Then on 4th and 14 and the game on the line, Jordan Wilson sacked the Cougars’ quarterback and Huntington took over on downs.

“I expected it to be a hard-fought game. They’re so big,” Huntington head coach Chad Harkins said. “That’s the hardest we fought all year. They fought hard and I’m extremely proud of my guys.”

Huntington was originally supposed to take on another Class AA team in Oak Forest Academy, but the Yellow Jackets had on their schedule a road game at District 5-AA rival Silliman.

Still, Columbia Academy proved to be a good tune-up for Huntington (8-3) with the playoffs starting next Friday. The Cougars got a pair of touchdown runs from Josh Hamilton that enabled them to take a 26-16 lead with 9:35 to go in the third quarter.

But the Hounds 1-2 running punch of Josh Lee and Jeremy Randall kept them in the game and eventually gave them the lead. Lee scored on a 1-yard run late in the first quarter that tied the score at 7-7.

Randall’s 4-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter gave them a 14-13 lead, but that didn’t last long as R.J. Thomas ran in from 1 yard out to give Columbia Academy (3-8) a 20-14 halftime lead.

“I don’t think we played up to our capabilities in the first half,” Harkins said.

Randall had 18 carries for 158 yards while Lee had 93 yards rushing on 16 carries. Roberts competed five-of-six passes for 62 yards and Tyler Peré had three catches for 44 yards.

“Both of them (Randall and Lee) had some big plays. We had some big passing plays on third and fourth down,” Harkins said.

Huntington will host Newton County Academy in the first round of the MPSA Class A South State Playoffs at 7 p.m. Friday.

Amite School Center 31, WCCA 18

LIBERTY — While the Rams were playing for pride, the Rebels were playing to get their first win of the season when these two teams collided Friday night.

Alex Badon ran for two touchdowns and Cole Wells threw two touchdown passes as the Rebels ended their season on a high note with a big win over the Rams.

Amite School Center’s running game was too much for WCCA’s defense to overcome as the Rebels racked up 258 yards on the ground. Badon scored on a 62-yard run in the first quarter and a 37-yard run in the third quarter.

WCCA (3-8) stayed in the game on a 78-yard run on the first play from scrimmage by Tip McKenzie and a 10-yard run by Justin Davis in the second quarter.

McKenzie needed 55 yards going into the game to reach 1,000 rushing yards for the season. He got that and then some as he finished with 115 yards on 16 carries.

But Amite School Center (1-10) scored 19 straight points in the second half to turn a 12-12 tie at the half into a insurmountable 31-12 lead. Both of Wells’s touchdown passes were to Corey Varnado, who scored a third time in the fourth quarter.

Matthew McGraw made the final score respectable with a 32-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter. Christopher Houghton led the Rams’ defense with 19 tackles.

Riverdale 20, ACCS 13

COUSHATTA, LA. — The Rebels’ season came to an end with a tough loss on the road to the Rebels Friday night. ACCS finished 1-10 while Riverdale improved to 4-4. No other information on the game was available.