Lions' Smith makes game-winning kick

Columbus hosts division-leading Mississippi next

BY ROBERT SPRUCK - rspruck@ledger-enquirer.com --

Columbus Lions coach Jason Gibson didn't want to give the Augusta Colts another possession, so he was willing to rely on kicker Hunter Smith.

Smith didn't let down his coach or his teammates Saturday, making a 23-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Lions to a 51-48 win against the Colts at the Columbus Civic Center.

"I knew they had two timeouts, and I wanted the ball at the end," Gibson said. "I didn't want to give them the ball back with any time on the clock. I know how explosive their wide receivers are, and I wanted to win or lose with the ball."

Smith, who played at Gardner-Webb, connected on his third field goal of the game to ensure the Lions' win.

"Having kicked for so long and in college, it's just another kick," Smith said. "You just try to do the same thing you practice."

Columbus quarterback Joey Conrad went 22-for-33 for 239 yards and four touchdowns to lead a well-balanced passing attack. Gerald Gales caught 11 passes for 148 yards and four touchdowns. Anthony Merritt had nine catches for 80 yards and a touchdown.

The Lions led for most of the game before Augusta tied the game at 48 with 2:27 left. Corey McKinney caught his fifth touchdown of the game when he got loose for a 2-yard touchdown reception. The Lions responded as they went 24 yards on six plays to set up the game-winning field goal.

Had the Lions not made some mistakes early in the fourth quarter, they wouldn't have needed a last-second kick. The Lions had the chance to take a two-possession lead on a couple of occasions, but turned it over both times. After Conrad fumbled the snap, he threw a strike to Merritt, who fumbled the ball at the goal line. The Colts recovered it in the end zone to keep the game 41-33 with 11:05 left.

"We made some great plays, and we also gave up a lot of plays," Gibson said. "We are going to continue to work to limit the number of big plays."

The Lions took advantage of three first-half interceptions and led at the half. Damien Daniels' 27-yard interception return with 3:32 left in the first half set up the go-ahead touchdown. Two plays later, the Lions used a double pass to score. Merritt caught a pass behind the line of scrimmage and found Gayles for a 16-yard touchdown, giving the Lions a 23-20 lead.

Keon Newson's interception with 39 seconds left prevented the Colts from regaining the lead before the half. The Lions took advantage of that turnover by kicking a field goal on the last play of the first half.

The Lions appeared to have another interception, but they were called for roughing the passer and the Colts maintained possession with 10:01 left in the second quarter.

Contact Robert Spruck at 706-576-6230 Saturday at the Civic Center Augusta 1371315--48 Columbus 7191510--51 First quarter A - Corey McKinney 17 pass from Mike Rathje (kick failed ), 11:04 C - Gerald Gales 30 pass from Joey Conrad (kick failed), 10:02 A -