DEMOPOLIS —‚ With only four seconds left to play and the game knotted at 6-all, Keith crashed into the end zone to put a damper on John Essex’s homecoming festivities Friday night.

The Hornets (3-4, 2-3 Region) struggled with the Bears rushing attack for most of the night and ultimately it led to their undoing in a gut wrenching 14-6 loss.

Keith (4-3) secured the win in the last 4.8 seconds of the game when Rodney Ellis scored a touchdown. To seal the victory, Charles Johnson ran in the two-point conversion. Johnson also had more than 100 yards rushing for the game.

At the half, John Essex had led 6-0, but in the second half Keith turned the game in their favor.

“It took us two quarters to wake up,” said head coach Harry Crum.

Ellis threw a 40-yard pass to Cleveland Jones in the third quarter to bring the game to 6-6.

Crum credits the defense for setting the tone for a great game.

“They created fumble opportunities that gave us good opportunities,” Crum said.

Jones intercepted a pass that led to the game-winning drive, and Larry Molette, Issac Voglin, Ellis, Demarquis Lumpkin, Jeremy Crum and Eric Tolbert kept the defense strong.

“Most of those players held John Essex to short games most of the night,” Crum said.

John Essex jumped out to an early lead, marching their first possession of the game down the field and scoring on a lateral from AJ Bennett to Denzell Charleston to take a 6-0 lead.

The Bears rolled up 117 yards on the ground in the first half, but the Hornet defense held up when it counted most.

With Keith driving and just more than a minute to play in the half Korey Jones and Anthony McIntosh met in the backfield for a 15-yard sack, forcing a third-and-21, which eventually led the Hornets to a 6-0 halftime lead.

Keith rarely turned to its passing game but on the Bears’ first attempt Terry Fountain plucked the ball out of the air for a Hornet turnover.

The third quarter opened on a similar note, this time with Bennett snagging the Bears’ second pass attempt of the game.

The Keith run game, which had been eating chunks of yardage at a time, took the Bears to the outskirts of the red zone. Keith took to the air again, this time for a 25-yard touchdown strike, knotting the game at 6-all late in the third.

The ball would change hands several times as the clock wound down, but it was Keith’s final possession that dealt the final blow.

The Bears marched more than 60 yards in 2 minutes, 15 seconds to score the go-ahead touchdown and converting the two-point conversion.

The Bears finished the night with 208 yards rushing.

Bennett led the Hornets in total offense with 27 yards rushing on 10 carries. He also had 57 yards receiving on two catches. Charleston was the leading rusher with 59 yards on 11 carries.

Brookwood 22, Selma 14

Selma High (5-2) lost to Brookwood on Friday night. Darrius Hawkins scored the first touchdown on a 25-yard pass. Keenan Woods scored the second touchdown on a 12-yard run. J’Vantae Furlow kicked both extra points.

In order for the Saints to qualify for the playoffs, they must win one of their remaining two games games

It won’t be easy, however, Selma must face Greenville on Oct. 15 and Demopolis on Oct. 22.

“It gets kind of crazy now,” said head coach Leroy Miles.

The team will take things one day a time to prepare for the upcoming games.

“We’ve got to lock down and come up with a good game plan,” Miles said.

Laura Fenton contributed to this report.