THOMASTON — A 34-yard field goal by Jake Jeffcoat and a 1-yard touchdown run by Powell Krepps were the highlights for Spalding High in a 31-10 loss Friday night in the Region 4-AAAA Div. B opener at Upson-Lee.

Spalding (1-3-1 overall, 0-1 subregion) had only 14 yards of offense — 7 rushing and 7 passing — in the second half as Upson-Lee (3-2, 1-0) scored on three consecutive possessions to put the game away and win its third in a row. Leading the charge was senior quarterback Corey Moss who ended the night rushing for a game-high 183 yards on 21 carries, which included a 66-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, an 8-yard TD run in the third quarter and a 27-yard TD run in the fourth quarter.

Moss and sophomore fullback Kendrarius Pennyman, who ended the game with 126 yards rushing on 26 carries, formed a one-two punch the Jags could not stop as they duo topped the 100-yard mark in the same game for the second time in the same game this season. Upson-Lee ended the night with 397 yards of offense from scrimmage, 335 on 57 rushes and 62 on two completed passes.

Pennyman scored the game’s only other touchdown on a 1-yard run with 1:35 to play in the second quarter to give the Knights a 14-10 lead going into the half.

Both teams traded scores in the first half, Spalding drawing first blood on Jeffcoat’s field goal with 6:00 left to play in the first quarter and Upson-Lee answering on the 66-yard TD run by Moss. An interception by Phillip Goodrum set up a four-play, 10-yard drive for Spalding’s next score which came on Powell’s run on fourth-and-inches from the 1-yard line to put Spalding up 10-7 with 7:22 left to play in the first half. But, once again, Upson-Lee matched Spalding driving 80 yards on 15 plays on a steady diet of runs by Moss and Pennyman.

Pennyman had the drive’s final play on his TD run as Upson-Lee took the lead for good.

Spalding ended the night with 131 yards of offense from scrimmage, 82 of it coming on 24 rushes and 49 of it coming on four completed passes. Two fumbles, including one on special teams, and an interception didn’t help the Jags’ cause.

Upson-Lee broke the game open on its second possession of the second half as it drove 91 yards in 11 plays, the big play being a 55-yard pass from Moss to Craig Kirschmann on third-and-12 to bring the ball to the Spalding 11. Two plays later the Knight scored to take a 21-10 lead.

Upson-Lee then put the game away on its next possession as it drove 76 yards in seven plays, the big plays being a 22-yard run by Pennyman and the 27-yard scoring run by Moss that put the Knights ahead 28-10. The Knights then iced the game when they recovered a fumble on a kickoff at the Spalding 18. It led to a 19-yard field goal by Tyler Stewart to account for the game’s final margin.