POYEN - The deeper into the postseason Junction City goes, the better Jamal Johnson gets.
A week after leading Junction City's come-from-behind victory at McCrory with 222 yards and two touchdowns, the junior had a monster game on Friday, racking up 251 yards and four touchdowns on just 18 carries, as Junction City held off Poyen 48-38 in the 2A quarterfinals.
The Dragons (9-2) won their seventh straight and advanced to the semifinals for the 16th time in the last 20 years.
Junction City will head to Des Arc, a 38-22 winner over Bigelow, next week with a spot in the state finals at stake.
The Indians (10-2) saw their three-game winning streak come to an end.
On an evening where both schools traded haymakers, it was the Dragons' ability to immediately answer that proved to be the difference.
Of the six touchdowns the Dragons scored, four came on drives of two plays or less.
Johnson’s monster night began with a first half that saw the junior score a trio of touchdowns while tallying 120 yards on just six carries.
The junior opened the scoring in the contest with a 48-yard run, and he added the 2-point conversion to make it 8-0 at the 9:32 mark of the first quarter.
But after quickly falling behind, the Indians responded by scoring the game's next 16 points.
Jaxson Carter fired a 17-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Sanchez with Carter adding the 2-point conversion to tie the game at 8-all with 5:22 left in the period.
Carter then scored on a 10-yard run over the right side before connecting with Sanchez on the 2-point try to give the Indians a 16-8 edge.
However, their lead would be a short-lived one.
Just 19 seconds later, Johnson broke free for a 37-yard touchdown run with Tanner Barnett's run on the 2-point conversion tying the game at 16-all.
The game remained tied through the end of the period, but the Dragons regained the lead thanks to Johnson in the second quarter.
After getting a fourth-down stop, the Dragons took over at their 41.
A.J. Ivory, who added two touchdowns and 104 yards on just 10 carries, picked up 26 yards over four carries to lead the drive into Poyen territory.
Johnson then took matters over from there, scoring on a 21-yard run at the 7:31 mark with Barnett's 2-point conversion making it 24-16.
The Dragons then used their passing attack to aid their next scoring march.
Gabe Richard, who was 7-of-10 passing for 104 yards, connected with Cam Frazier on a 53-yard strike to give the Dragons a first down at Poyen's 22.
Ivory then scored on the next play on a run over the right side, and the junior added the 2-point conversion to make it 32-16.
But just when it seemed the Dragons had seized control, the Indians fought back.
Carter picked up a fourth-and-8 on a run on a fake punt, and two penalties by the Dragons helped set up an 8-yard run by the senior quarterback with 3:13 to play in the half.
Carter, who went 14-of-24 passing for 164 yards with a touchdown while also adding 108 yards and four scores on the ground, added the 2-point conversion to make it 32-24 at intermission.
As they did in the first half, Junction City started the second half by finding the end zone with Ivory scoring on a 28-yard run up the middle. Richard then found Frazier to make the 2-point conversion good, and the Dragons led 40-24 just 94 seconds into the the second half.
But again, the Indians answered with Carter scoring on a 1-yard run to cap a 53-yard drive at the 6:41 mark to make it 40-30.
However, Johnson delivered an immediate response, scampering 76 yards to paydirt on the Dragons' first play from scrimmage on the ensuing possession. Richard then connected with Devontay Gilbert on the 2-point conversion to make it 48-30.
Poyen answered after Carter capped an 11-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal at the 11:51 mark of the fourth quarter. Carter then found Sanchez on the 2-point conversion to make it 48-38.
But that would be as close as the Indians would get, as the Dragons' defense came up with two turnovers to stop drives into Junction City territory, and Johnson was able to pick up two first downs to run out the clock.
Frazier finished with 3 catches for 65 yards for the Dragons, who finished with 445 yards of total offense in the win while having the ball for just over 17 minutes in the game.
Blake Rhodes had 65 yards on 16 carries, while Sanchez had 9 catches for 123 yards and a touchdown for the Indians, who had 391 yards of total offense.