A stout running game as well as big plays by the defense and special teams all added to a 73-37 win for the top-seeded Centreville Academy Tigers over the 16th-seeded Hartfield Academy Hawks Friday night in the first round of the MAIS Class AA State Playoffs.

Even though no one for Centreville ran for at least 100 yards in the game, the Tigers still racked up 313 yards on the ground. John Marcus McDowell led the way with 87 yards on four carries while Tyler Caston had 74 yards on five carries and Austin Addington added 54 yards on just two carries.

“We just came out and played hard. We got an early lead and we got to play everyone,” Centreville assistant coach Brian Stutzman said. “It’s a good win to start the playoffs.”

McDowell had a 16-yard touchdown run with 1:59 to go in the first quarter to give Centreville (10-1) a commanding 23-3 advantage. Caston had a 19-yard TD run early in the second quarter to go with a 40-yard TD pass from Casey Haygood with 3:25 left until halftime.

Addington scored his first touchdown of the game on an 85-yard kickoff return with 5:02 remaining in the first half and he scored on a 36-yard run late in the third quarter.

“The second team, the reserves, played good. They scored several touchdowns,” Stutzman said. “We played the reserves for much of the second half.”

That included Wyatt Brabham, who scored on a 24-yard run late in the ball game and had six tackles on defense. Addington, a sophomore, had a team-leading nine tackles.

By halftime, the Tigers had a 54-17 lead over the Hawks and at one point in the third quarter the score was 67-17 in favor of the home team. Hartfield Academy scored three touchdowns in “garbage time” to make the final score more respectable.

Centreville Academy hosts River Oaks School, the No. 9 seed, next Friday at 7 p.m. River Oaks edged past No. 8 seed Winona Christian School on the road, 43-42.