By Justin Fedich | The Selma Times-Journal

Ellwood Christian had more yards in one play of the second half than in the entire first half. Unfortunately for Ellwood, one second half play was all the Eagles got.

The junior varsity game between Ellwood Christian and Camden School of Arts and Technology was suspended with 7:28 left in the third quarter due to lightning. Camden led Ellwood 6-0 after limiting the Eagles to -2 total yards on offense in the first half.

Ellwood’s eight first half penalties didn’t help matters.

“We’re a better football team than all those penalties,” said Ellwood head coach Derrick Edwards. “We’re a better football team than they are, we just came out flat.”

Camden added six first half penalties, but the game was sloppy for more than just the frequent tossing of yellow flags.

With 4:20 remaining in the first quarter, Camden muffed a punt, and Ellwood recovered at its own 43-yard line.

One play later, Ellwood’s Londarius Dean fumbled the ball on a reverse, and Camden’s Jamichael McCaskey recovered. On the very next play, Camden’s Kelsey Irby fumbled the ball back to the Eagles.

For the fourth play in a row, a player fumbled the ball to the other team. This time, the turnover proved to be costly for Ellwood.

Irby scored a 5-yard rushing touchdown with 42 seconds left in the first quarter to take a 6-0 lead.

“He played well for us today, and he’s been huge for us all season,” said Camden head coach Kelsey Thomas.

While the turnovers subsided in the second quarter, neither team’s offense was able to get into a rhythm.

Edwards wasn’t happy with what he saw from his team in the first half, but he was certain that his motivational halftime speech would give his players some energy going into the second half.

“My promise of conditioning them in practice was a little motivation for them,” Edwards said with a laugh.

For two plays, his speech worked.

Ellwood forced a fumble on the kickoff return and recovered it. A play later, Emanuel Blanks ran the ball 13 yards — Ellwood’s longest play of the game — down to the Camden 29-yard line. The run marked Ellwood’s only first down of the game and the furthest the Eagles had marched the ball down the field in just over 16 minutes of game time.

A strike of lightning prevented the game from progressing any further.

Edwards said he was sure his team would have scored on the drive. Now he’ll have to wait to see if his team comes out with the same type of energy it did in the second half of Tuesday’s game.

The two teams are still working on a date and time to finish playing the game.