Blake Slayton is leveled by two Decatur players. Hartselle's 19-game winning streak ended at the hands of the Red Raiders Friday night. | Brent Maze

Hartselle can’t overcome second-half miscues as Decatur stops Tiger win streak at 19

Decatur’s Josh Matthews scored a 14-yard touchdown with 7:26 remaining to lift the Red Raiders over No. 1 Hartselle 21-14, ending the Tigers’ school-best 19-game winning streak.

The Tigers (4-1, 3-0) had one last opportunity to score when they got the ball back at their own 4-yard line with 3:11 to play. Deacon Aldridge led the team down to the Decatur 31 with 10 seconds left, but his fourth-and-1 pass to Tanner Oakes was incomplete, sealing the first regular season loss since the Red Raiders (3-2, 1-2) won 20-14 in 2010.

Head coach Bob Godsey said the loss was disappointing, but it’s not the end of the season.

[nggallery id=772]

“The sun will come up tomorrow,” Godsey said. “It’s not the end of the world. This was a non-region game.

“This loss will make us a better team if we learn from our mistakes.”

The mistakes that Godsey was talking about resulted in two scores. The Tigers gave up an 82-yard kickoff return by Tae Hayes for a touchdown, tying the score 7-7 in the first quarter.

Then, on the go ahead drive, two busted plays kept the Red Raiders’ drive alive. On third-and-17, Decatur quarterback Jackson Fite scrambled for a 32-yard gain. A couple of plays later, Matthews picked up a fumbled snap for a big gain, setting up his touchdown run.