Charlestown Pirate Football solidified their offensive groove Friday night in the Bone Yard, hosting #2 Heritage Hills (8-2) in the Class 3A Sectional #31 opener.  Despite unorganized officiating, the Pirates fought through ten penalties and a couple bouts of cramps to rally from a 24-7 third quarter deficit to edge Heritage Hills 39-37.  The win not only advances the Pirates (8-2) to Friday’s Sectional Semi-Final against #15 Brownstown; but it also ended the pesky post season success the Patriots (4-1) have had over Charlestown.  During the pre-game conversation with CPPSB.com, Coach Hawkins revealed a game plan built around pounding it away on the ground; which Coach and the Pirates executed to a such a degree that plain worn out the famously disciplined perennial power from just west of Santa Claus, Indiana.  While the Pirate offense put the Patriots on their heals midway through the third quarter, Coach Brafford and the Pirate Defense provided the necessary stops and disruptions to allow the Pirates to rally to a 31-31 tie with 7:04 remaining in the game.  The Pirate offense out-rushed the visitors 475 to 217; holding their multi-purpose Senior standout Kenton Crews to just 74 yards.  Charlestown saw three players rush for more than a hundred yards in the game.  Junior Antonyo Gaddie, named the Coyle Chevy, Buick, GMC and Coyle Nissan Offensive Player of the Game, finished the contest with 171 ground yards on 29 carries and three scores.  Junior QB Brendan Lawler finished with 158 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown, while also adding 45 yards of passing and another touchdown to Junior Garrett Woods on two of four tosses.  Senior Tate Boley added 115 yards on just seven carries.  Senior Quinton Fetz was named the Coyle Chevy, Buick, GMC and Coyle Nissan Defensive Player of the Game after leading the Pirates with five solo tackles and providing the motivation the defensive line needed while compromising the Patriot offensive plan.  The Pirates took a 39-31 lead with 1:35 remaining before Heritage Hills answered three plays later.  The difference at the end of the game being a missed conversion pass with 1:04 left which would have likely forced overtime.  The Pirates, for the second straight year, will host conference rival Brownstown (8-2) in Friday’s Sectional semi-final.  The Braves dispatched Salem 43-18 Friday night.  Listen to the archived broadcast of Friday’s game at www.CPPSB.com.

Don’t miss your chance this Friday to pick up your favorite Charlestown Football T-Shirt or Hat to support the football team during their state play-off run. There will be cotton t-shirts for $5.00, climate control shirts for $10.00, blankets $20.00, spirit towels $5.00, and ball caps for $20.00. Sizes are available from adult small through adult 4X while supplies last. There is a limited supply of youth large t-shirts and youth large hoodies. The t-shirts are $5.00 and the youth hoodies are $20.00 while supplies last.

Pirate Football merchandise will be available from 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM at the corner of Park St and HWY 3 Friday October 23rd.  Sales are being held Friday afternoon due to the IHSAA rule of no spirit item sales on school property during state playoff games. 100% of all proceeds go directly to supporting the football team during the 2015 State Playoffs.

The IHSAA conducted its blind draw to determine the Sectional first round match-ups in the annual Indiana HS Football State Tournament Sunday evening.  The Charlestown Pirates (6-2) will host Heritage Hills (7-1) in the lower bracket, to open Class 3A Sectional #30 play on Friday, October 23rd at 8:00 PM (EDT).  The remaining Sectional #30 pairings include Corydon at Brown County and North Harrison at Southridge in the upper half of the bracket; and in the lower half of the bracket, Salem at Brownstown.

For more information on the State Class 3A Football Tournament CLICK HERE; or for more information Pirate Football, go to www.PiratePride.BLUE/Football.  For complete live coverage of Pirate Football in the 2015 State Tourney, follow Charlestown Pirate Pride Sports on Twitter at @CPPSB.