1 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Jake Horton (88) and Josh Wallace (10) move in for a sack during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
2 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Richard Moses (23) chases down Shades Valley during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
3 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Cooper Kelley (10) runs the ball for a touchdown during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
4 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Braxton Hall (8) and Jake Horton (88) take down Shades Valley during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
5 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
William Mote (50) holds up a recovered fumble during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
6 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Mason Pronk (5) runs the ball during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
7 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Demillion Simms (7) holds off a Shades Valley player during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
8 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Jacob Jenkins (4) makes a catch during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
9 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Cooper Kelley (10) celebrates a touchdown during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
10 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Demillion Simms (7) and Scott Moates (69) take down Shades Valley during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
11 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Jacob Jenkins (4) runs the ball for a touchdown during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
12 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Richard Moses (23) and Scott Moates (69) tackle Shades Valley during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
13 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Jake Horton (88) sacks the quarterback during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
14 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Colton Ledbetter (15) takes down Shades Valley during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
15 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Colton Ledbetter (15) sacks the quarterback during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
16 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Drake Tabor (91) makes an extra point during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
17 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Mason Pronk (5) dives into the end zone during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
18 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Jalen Henderson (2) carries the ball during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
19 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Kenyon Hines (11) reaches for a tackle during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
20 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Mason Pronk (5) throws the ball during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
21 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Demillion Simms (7) avoids a tackle while running a interceptiuon for a touchdown during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
22 of 22
Sarah Finnegan
SPHS vs Shades Valley Football 2018
Demillion Simms (7) and Joshua Stanton (12) take down Shades Valley during a game between Spain Park and Shades Valley on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, at Frank Nix Stadium in Irondale.
IRONDALE — “Finish through.”
It was a life lesson that Spain Park High School football coach Shawn Raney was trying to teach his players at the end of a rough season — how to overcome adversity and complete the journey.
It was a test his Jaguars passed easily, as they romped over host Shades Valley, 42-10, in the season finale for both teams.
For two seniors playing their final game in a Spain Park uniform, it was a heck of a way to go out. Quarterback Mason Pronk accounted for all five of his team’s offensive touchdowns, with four passing scores — two of them long bombs on the first play of back-to-back drives — and a 16-yard scramble for the fifth.
And for running back Jalen Henderson, his 68 rushing yards was enough to put him past a season milestone, as he finished the year with 1,010 yards on the ground. He also scored on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Pronk.
“It’s such a great relief — something I’ve been working for all season, the summer and last spring to get it,” Henderson said of the milestone.
The game got off to a scary start for the Jags, as they muffed the catch of the opening kickoff. The Mounties pounced on the loose ball at the visitors’ 38-yard line, but stalled out just inside the 4 and settled for a field goal to take an early lead. And it was the only lead the home team had all night.
It was the Spain Park defense that put the team’s first points on the scoreboard, as defensive back Demillion Simms’ leaping interception of an Isaac Sims pass was run back 72 yards for a pick-six.
The Jags took total command in the second quarter with 28 points. Pronk’s run for a touchdown started the momentum, and after Shades Valley running back Antonio Williams kept things close with a 1-yard TD, Pronk reeled off three straight scoring tosses to round out the first half. He found Jacob Jenkins on the first play of the subsequent possession for a 65-yard score, and on the next drive Pronk struck on the first play again. This time it was Cooper Kelley on the receiving end for a 74-yard scoring toss.
The final touchdown of the half came on Henderson’s catch, a 29-yard effort with just under two minutes before intermission.
Pronk and Kelley paired up again in the third quarter on a short 2-yard touchdown pass to finish off the victory.
Raney was as happy as he could be with the season-ending three-game winning streak. It was just the comeback he had been looking for after the Jags dropped six straight in the ultra-tough Class 7A, Region 3, and a fitting finish for seniors like Henderson and Pronk.
“That’s what this is all about. I know wins and losses are important, but there are so many life lessons you can learn from what we went through. To me that’s what this country needs, that’s what these kids need, and that’s what they got,” Raney said. “Our kids kept showing up on Sundays [during the losing streak] and worked. And as a coach, that’s the most I’ve been proud of a team.”
In proof of the old saying that statistics often lie, the Mounties outgained Spain Park by 67 yards, and ran more than half again as many offensive plays as the visitors. But Sims was sacked four times by the Jags defense, with Jake Horton and Josh Wallace recording 1.5 sacks each. Lineman Cedric Tooson had seven tackles, three for losses with one sack.
Pronk was 9-of-13 passing for Spain Park with 191 yards, most of it on the two long touchdowns. Sims was 23-of-27 through the air for 266 yards for Shades Valley, but with two interceptions.
The Jags close out with a 4-6 record, while the Mounties end the season at 2-8.