Game MPSSAA 3A Football Regional of round Round 1

Guilford Park football won its first playoff game ever on Friday. The Panthers faced Chopticon High School in the 3A regional quarterfinals as one of two Howard County teams in the 3A South bracket. Guilford Park scored early and often, scoring their second most points of the season with 48. Their 56 against Hammond on Sept. 12 remains the program record. Chopticon struggled to get anything going for their side. The Braves posted a 2-7 regular season record and had offensive woes all season long. They did look to show improvement after gaining some momentum in the final game of the season. Against La Plata High School, they scored a season high 33 points, almost double their previous high of 17. QB A’Yar Reed-Wright ‘27 started the scoring early with a 46 yard pass to WR Andrew Adams. Adams broke through three Chopticon players to set up the game’s first touchdown. Reed-Wright ended the regular season with 1,290 passing yards and 12 passing touchdowns. RB Tyler Lee ‘27 led the county in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns, recording 1,712 and 28, respectively. He had multiple key runs against Chopticon to help put the game out of reach early for the Braves. Head Coach Tom Montag recently told WTOP News about the significance of Lee being “dominant” every week and generating consistent offense. The Panthers defense seems to have saved their best for last. In their last two games against Long Reach and Chopticon, Guilford Park recorded its first two shutouts of the season. They had never kept a team scoreless in the prior 18 games as a program. In their first playoff game as a program last season, Guilford Park lost 35-6 to Oxon Hill High School, ending the 2024 season with a three game losing streak. Guilford Park will face Stephen Decatur High School this week for the regional semifinals. Stephen Decatur defeated Reservoir 42-12 in the quarterfinals and are firing on all cylinders now. After losing the first game of the season to Wicomio in a close 19-12 finish, the Seahawks have won eight straight games. They have only allowed more than 14 points in two of them. Guilford Park will face their greatest test of the season in a bid to stay undefeated and push forward for their first regional crown over the next two weeks.