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GATESVILLE – Chris Lee scored the go-ahead touchdown with a little over five minutes remaining and defensive back DeShawan Parker made it stand with a game-sealing interception in the endzone as Gates County edged Bertie, 28-26, here Friday on Homecoming night for the Barons.

With the win, Gates County (5-2 overall and 1-1 in league play) maintains third place in the Tar-Roanoke Conference standings while Bertie suffered its third straight loss and fell to 2-5 overall (0-2 in the league).

Gates County was seemingly in control of the game, building a 10-point advantage (22-12) when Lee, despite having his facemask grabbed, managed to remain in-bounds en route to a 24-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter. DeAndre Smith added the two-point conversion run.

The Barons then seemed poised to put the game away when A.J. Hart recovered a Bertie fumble on the ensuing kickoff. GCHS started that series at the Falcons 16 yardline and used three running plays to reach Bertie’s 9. The drive stalled at that point, however, as the Barons were flagged for illegal motion on back-to-back plays followed by an incomplete pass on fourth down.

Despite being backed up twice by penalties, Bertie found a spark after that defensive stand. Starting from their own 11, quarterback Tayvien Ward tossed a pair of 16-yard completions to Ro Perry and Zy’Miere Dempsey respectively and then reeled off a 21-yard scamper that put the Falcons in GCHS territory. Four plays later, facing a 4^th down and 7 play, Ward and Dempsey hooked up on a 43-yard touchdown pass. Despite failing on the conversion run, Bertie had trimmed their deficit to 22-18 with 3:22 left in the third period.

After forcing a Gates punt, Bertie scored again on their next possession. Despite being backed up again due to a holding infraction and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, the Falcons drove 73 yards in 12 plays, capped by Ward’s 17-yard scamper to paydirt. The conversion run was successful, staking Bertie to a 26-22 lead with 5:36 remaining in the game.

But the Barons answered quickly, scoring two plays after the ensuing kickoff on Lee’s 39-yard run, his third TD of the night. The conversion run failed, leaving GCHS clinging to a 28-26 lead with 5:04 left.

Highlighted by Ward’s 10-yard run and his 16-yard pass to Daivontae Faison, Bertie responded with a drive of their own, reaching the Barons 26 yardline. However, on a 4^th down and 6 play from that point, Gates defender A.J. Riddick broke up a pass, allowing his team to take possession of the ball.

That possession didn’t last long when the Barons lost a fumble on first down, giving Bertie new life at the GCHS 25 yardline. But back-to-back big plays from the Gates defense preserved the win as Cam Lee had a quarterback sack on third down followed by Parker’s interception in his endzone with 61 seconds left.

Each team scored on their opening possessions of the game.

Bertie, using Ward’s arm (he finished with 251 passing yards on a 13-of-21 performance), quickly moved downfield to start the contest. That seven-play drive was capped by Ward’s 16-yard scoring strike to Dempsey. The conversion run failed, staking the Falcons to a 6-0 lead at the 9:17 mark of the first quarter.

Gates County answered with a touchdown, marching 56 yards in just four plays capped by Chris Lee’s 15-yard TD run. The conversion run failed, leaving the two teams deadlocked at 6-6 with 7:53 left in the opening period.

It took Bertie just six plays after the ensuing kickoff to score again. Highlighted by Ward’s 49-yard pass to Demspey on third down, the two connected again three snaps later from 4 yards out, producing a touchdown. The conversion pass failed, leaving Bertie with a 12-6 lead with 5:09 left in the opening period.

Gates County used its defense to set-up its next score when Jamari Dunning recovered a fumble at the Falcons 17 yardline on the next-to-last play of the first quarter. On the second snap of the second quarter, Smith scored on a 5-yard run and then added the conversion run that gave the Barons a 14-12 lead that held at halftime.

Gates County finished with 263 total yards, of which 257 came on the ground. Chris Lee led that effort with 153 rushing yards on 12 carries while Smith added 102 yards on 16 attempts.

Bertie outgained their hosts by more than 100 yards as the Falcons finished with 378 yards of total offense. In addition to his big night throwing the football, Ward was also his team’s leading rusher with 87 net yards on 15 carries. Dempsey was the game’s top receiver, grabbing 8 passes for 169 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also added 22 rushing yards on 3 attempts.

However, Bertie hurt themselves by suffering four turnovers, allowed three sacks (totaling -12 yards), and had 15 penalties for 121 yards.

Both teams will be back in action for conference games on Oct. 18: Gates traveling to Washington County while Bertie is home vs. Perquimans County.