It’s too late to catch Jaleel Willis of White Station as he runs this in for his team’s second touchdown. The Spartans defeated German 28 to 25. (Photos by Warren Roseborough)

When Mitchell (8-4) traveled to Dyersburg last week to tangle with host Dyersburg (10-3), the Tigers expected a tough game.

Expectations aside, Mitchell survived and came away with a 40-35 victory in the Class 3A quarterfinal battle.

Fans and cheerleaders celebrate White Station’s victory and revel in the knowledge that their team now advances to the next round of the playoffs.

Decoryn Houston of Germantown bears the weight of disappointment after his team is eliminated from state playoff contention.

Mitchell recovered an onside kick by Dyersburg with a little over two minutes remaining in the game. Despite numbness in his fingers, Keiwone Malone got the job done on the receiving team. Malone also caught 13 passes from quarterback Robert Redmond, who was 25 of 37 for a whopping 488 yards and four touchdowns.

Coach Nathan Cole now must prepare Mitchell for the challenge of Nashville David Lipscomb on Friday in the semifinals.

Mitchell and White Station (10-3) are the last two Memphis area teams remaining in the playoffs. White Station turned back Germantown 28 to 26 and will play at Franklin in one of the Class 5A semifinal contests.

Melrose, saddled with narrow losses this season, suffered a painful 28-26 setback to undefeated Henry County (13-0.)

The Golden Wildcats of Melrose (8-5) failed to make points after scoring three times, including after a touchdown near the end of the game.