FOLEY, Ala. - Victory didn't arrive in 30 minutes or less, but the winner of the Blue and Gold Game is always a satisfied customer. Friday it was the Pirates who prevailed in a 45-38 nail-biting slugfest over the Lions at Foley's Ivan Jones Stadium.  

Fairhope quarterback Chase Domino did deliver the Pirate offense against a tough Foley defense and a determined, capable counterpart in Lion QB Maison Taylor.

The two combined for 499 yards passing and five touchdowns with the help of some amazing grabs on the receiving end, some break-out runs and the big men up front.

And then there was the exciting stuff: interceptions, fumbles, blocked punts, muffed kickoff returns, more blocked punts, quarterback sacks, scrambles and more interceptions. Early Fairhope mistakes kept Foley in the hunt, late Foley errors kept Fairhope in the lead. With both teams holding Region losses going in, coming out with a win was huge.

“I don't know if words can describe how big a win that was,” said Pirate head coach David Faulkner. “For us to come out and get a big rivalry win, a big region win, and to keep us in the hunt region-wise. It was a tremendous effort by both teams, probably one of the better ballgames I've been to in a long time.”

Foley head coach Todd Watson said his young team did a great job in the effort department, but sometimes that's not enough. “When you go against good teams, you can't afford to make mistakes. Too many times we got ourselves in position and then had penalties or mistakes that cost us drives and cost us scoring opportunities.

“We knew they were very deadly offensively. But when we had a chance on third down to get (the defense) off the field, they would come up with a big play and convert. As a young team, we have to learn to overcome mistakes and capitalize better when we get opportunities, especially in the red zone. The kids fought hard, the plan we had was good, but it was just good football and every time Foley and Fairhope play you get those kinds of games and tonight was no exception.”

Domino accepted the award on behalf of his teammates, especially his O-line.

"It's a great thing to come out in a game like this against Foley and get the win," he said. "It was never comfortable out there, Foley kept the

pressure on us. This is a real honor to get, but my line did a great job, gave me time, gave Tanner (Martin) some space. Foley played a great game. They were very prepared. Our defense did a great job out there and stopped them when they had to. We need to help out our defense more by

coming out and being more physical in the second half. Cut down on mistakes. And now we have to get ready for Daphne, Thursday. I'm excited."

The Pirates took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on a 15-yard TD run by Tanner Martin and a Domino to Nate Andrews pass from the Foley 17.

The Lions roared back by forcing a Fairhope punt situation early in the second quarter in which the snap sailed high and resulted in the best Lion field position to that point in the game at the Pirate 36. On the next play, Taylor found Quinton Butler over the middle for the score. D'marsjae Casey then picked off a Domino pass at full throttle and returned the interception 65 yards for a touchdown. With extra points by Nick Cutrone for Fairhope and Wyatt Hubbard for Foley the score was tied 14-14 and a new ball game was on. But the Pirates dominated the last five minutes of the first half as Domino muscled a keeper over to finish a 7-yard run, Ian Thomas intercepted a Tayler pass deep in Foley territory, but the Lions held and forced Cutrone to kick a 23-yard field goal. The Lions threatened driving down to the Pirate 6 before penalties backed them up and Taylor was sacked on fourth-and-goal.

Fairhope then moved 64 yards in four plays to score on a 2-yard Domino-to-Andrews toss with just 20 seconds left to take a 31-14 lead into the half. Foley got back into the game with a pair of blocked punts in the third quarter. Caleb Autrey blocked one to set up a 2-yard TD by Kalif Koen and Alontai Adams blocked and scooped another at the Fairhope 4 for the other to cut the Pirate lead to 31-28 at 7:22 in the period. 

The Pirates then drove 79 yards in eight plays culminating in a Domino-to-Martin option pass and a 10-point 38-28 Fairhope lead. Foley drove 62 yards on their next series but turned it over on downs to start the fourth quarter. After forcing a Fairhope punt, the Lions then went 51 yards in three plays to score on a 5-yard Taylor-to-Adams pass. The Pirates then went 80 yards with Martin closing it with a 4-yard TD run to build the 11-point final margin.

 Domino completed 13-of-25 passes for 229 yards with two TD passes and ran for 125 on 21 carries, including a TD. Martin rushed for 198 yards on 23 carries. Andrews had 7 receptions for 140 yards. Taylor was 20-of-32 passing for Foley with 270 yards and two touchdowns, and Kalif Koen moved 71 yards closer to the all-time Foley rushing record with just 12 carries.

The Pirates, who improved to 6-1, 4-1 in 6A Region 2 will host No. 1-ranked and defending state 6A champion Daphne in the Jubilee Cup Thursday at 7 p.m. at Majors Field. . The Lions (4-3, 2-3). will visit Region 2 opponent Williamson at Ladd-Peebles Stadium Friday in a must win game considering the unfolding playoff scenarios with Daphne, McGill-Toolen and Fairhope ahead in the standings.

The Great American Rivalry Series Champion trophy was presented by the United States Marines along with the game's Most Valuable Player award selected by media in attendance. The Series also awards a college scholarship to the top student-athlete from each school. For more go to: www.greatamericanrivalry.com.

The Jubilee Cup game will be broadcast by Cspire.com/brightlights (Cellular South) on FOX Sports Network's FOX Sports South regional sports network as part of the "Y'all  vs. Us" Rival Series featuring Missisippi and Alabama high school rivalries.