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GREENSBORO - Whether it's a high scoring game or a defensive battle, Page continues to struggle to win close games.

Friday night against East Forsyth, the Pirates never showed any signs of offensive life and lost 9-7 to the Eagles. The victory puts East Forsyth in firm control of first place in the Metro 4-A conference.

"We didn't execute," said Page coach Kevin Gillespie. "That's been the story in all our four losses."

The Pirates' offense started at a snail's pace and barely accelerated to a turtle in the second quarter. They had only 44 total yards at halftime and didn't record a first down until 5:28 to play before halftime.

But the Page defense kept them in the game, holding highly touted East quarterback Danny O'Brien and the Eagles offense to 23-yards of passing. It was a gallant effort by the Pirates defense as they jammed receivers at the line and constantly harassed O'Brien, a Maryland signee, into premature passes.

The Eagles finally mounted a sustained drive right before halftime.

Starting at their own 13, O'Brien got in a rhythm with his receivers, hitting three straight passes, the last one covering 36 yards to running back Josh Kellum. Two plays later, O'Brien found a wide open Spencer Warren for a 2-yard touchdown pass.

Page's John Spain blocked the extra point and the Eagles were ahead 6-0.

The Eagles came out after halftime and took the second half kickoff down the field. The drive stalled and East Forsyth had to settle for a 29-yard field goal and a 9-0 lead.

The Pirates showed signs of climbing back into the game with its first possession of the second half.

Page started at its 46-yard line after a nice kickoff return by Thuc Phan. With the benefit of two 15-yard penalties, the Pirates were quickly in the red zone.

The Pirates didn't waste their first scoring opportunity of the game. They lined up with three receivers on the right, all bunched tight together, including defensive lineman Gabe King. Page quarterback Will Newman rolled right and found King in the back of the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown pass, cutting the lead to 9-7.

After a three and out by the Eagles, Page started rolling downfield again, but Newman was sacked for a 3-yard loss on a third-and-nine play. The Pirates brought in kicker Matt Millisor for a 43-yard attempt, but the kick hooked left just before getting to the uprights and was no good.

"Once again, our defense played out of their minds," said East Forsyth coach Todd Willert. "That sack was the play of the game in my mind. At least we made him (Millisor) back up. Otherwise it's a chip shot and were looking at a 10-9 score and I'm in a much different mood right now."

The Pirates had one more possession, but were deep in their own territory and couldn't move the ball. They punted with 7:24 to play in the game thinking their defense would get them the ball back.

But the Eagles' Christian Smith and O'Brien made sure that didn't happen. The two Eagles pounded their way to four first downs and the game was over.

"We made mental mistakes in all phases of the game," Gillespie said. "I take full responsibility for that. All I know to do is come back here Monday and try to find a way to correct those mistakes."

EF - Spencer Warren 2 pass from Danny O'Brien (kick blocked)

EF - Zach Boyer 29 FG

P - Gabe King 11 pass from Will Newman (Matt Millisor kick)