Cornerstone Christian School played nearly flawless football for the first eight weeks of the season. On Friday night, turnovers would be the demise of the Chargers, as they lost their first game of the season to Crenshaw Christian, 21-14.

Even with the loss, Cornerstone head coach Tim Smith was still happy with the effort put forth by his Chargers.

“The kids played extremely hard,” Smith said. “The difference in the game was that we made turnovers and they didn’t. You can’t do that in big games and win.”

The first half was dominated by both defenses as neither offense was able to put together a scoring drive.

Crenshaw came out in the second half and scored on its first play from scrimmage on a 70-yard touchdown pass. The extra point gave Crenshaw a 7-0 lead over the Chargers.

Crenshaw came right back on its next possession and march down the field, capping the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run. The Cougars’ extra point pushed the Crenshaw lead to 14-0 and gave the Chargers their largest deficit of the season.

Cornerstone was able to get on the scoreboard on its next possession, as LaDarius King took a pitch and carried it 75 yards for a touchdown. KaDarius King’s extra-point kick would bring Cornerstone to within 14-7.

Cornerstone tied the game in the fourth quarter, as Josh Anderson rushed into the end zone from 30 yards out. KaDarius King’s extra-point kick tied the score midway through the fourth quarter.

Crenshaw drove the length of the field on its next possession and scored on a 2-yard run with around three and a half minutes to play. The extra point gave the Cougars a 21-14 lead.

The Chargers would not give up as they took over and drove down to the Crenshaw 20-yard line. The drive was stopped as Crenshaw picked off a Cornerstone pass with a little over a minute left in the game.

Crenshaw took two snaps to run out the clock and sealed the region championship, 21-14.

With the loss, Cornerstone falls to 8-1 to finish the regular season as region runner-up. The Chargers will host Sumter Academy, a team they beat 40-6 earlier this season, in the first round of Alabama Independent Schools Association Class 1A playoffs next Friday.

Smith is confident in his team getting geared up for the playoffs.

“We have to make sure we come back and get ready to play,” Smith said. “We will get back to work on Monday to play a good Sumter team.”