CENTREVILLE — Even after watching a 16-0 lead late in the first quarter turn into a 27-22 deficit nearly midway through the third quarter, the Centreville Academy Tigers did not panic.

Instead, Centreville Academy kept pounding away at Brookhaven Academy’s defense with its running game in which four different backs had rushing touchdowns over the course of the third and fourth quarters as the Tigers rallied to beat the Cougars 52-33 in the semifinals of the MAIS Class AA State Playoffs.

After the Cougars took their first lead of the game with 6:59 to go in the third quarter, they tried an onside kick and the Tigers came close to returning it for a touchdown. But they still got excellent field position and Daniel Vine took advantage with a 21-yard TD run at the 6:39 mark to retake the lead at 30-27 after Vine’s 2-point conversion run.

Wyatt Brabham, Stone Reynolds and Jace DeLee added touchdown runs with Brabham adding a pair of 2-point conversions runs of his own that gave No. 2 seed Centreville a 52-27 lead.

Reynolds had yet another stellar performance for the Tigers against their District 4-AA rivals and the No. 7 seed. He had 28 carries for 251 yards and three touchdowns. Vine had 11 carries for 85 yards and one touchdown while Brabham added 83 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries.

As a team, Centreville had 22 first downs and 479 yards of total offense – all on the ground. What hurt the Tigers the most was penalties. They were penalized 17 times for 160 yards while the Cougars were flagged just six times for 36 yards.

But like their regular-season meeting, turnovers were a factor in the outcome. Brookhaven Academy gave the ball away five times – four interceptions and one lost fumble. Centreville lost a pair of fumbles.

Brabham, Cody Brashier, Coleton Petersn and Colby Welch each picked off a pass. Peterson led the team in tackles with nine.

Centreville Academy (10-2) plays host to No. 6 seed St. Joseph Catholic High School out of Greenville next Friday at 7 p.m. in the semifinals. St. Joseph (10-2) upset No. 3 seed Manchester Academy on the road 35-0.