Round One Recap

Spartanburg 45 JL Mann 3

The score is lopsided. I know. But the reason this is leadworthy is because the biggest storyline of the opening round came from this game. After about a month out with an injury, Spartanburg’s superstar running back Trenton Lynch returned and made his presence known.

It is not a secret that without him, the Vikings’ offense has struggled to find some consistency. But, in a game that featured 2 teams that were banged up, Lynch was clearly a boon. Spartanburg went down 3-0 about halfway through the first quarter, but the rest of the game went all the way of the team clad in blue and gold. Lynch tallied 124 yards and 2 touchdowns on 6 carries. Zymil Hill also had 6 touches that went for 100 yards and a TD.

Quarterback Trey Burke completed 14 of 25 passes for 222 yards and three scores – one to leading receiver Kendrion Keenon (3 catches, 81 yards), another to Keyvion “Rock” Ferguson, and the third to Torrean Davis.

With the victory, the Vikes advanced to take on the Ridge View Blazers in round 2 of the 5A Division 1 playoffs.

Gaffney 28 Eastside 10

All season long, the stats have told one thing about the Indians – that they are a team that relies heavily on their ability to run the football. That is not to say that QB Banks Bouton, who was thrust into the role early in the season after Jayvon Gilmore transferred out, hasn’t passed the ball well at times. But, the numbers don’t lie – Gaffney’s offense is at its best when Josiah Hill is able to tote the rock.

The Indians have not put up eye-popping numbers this season – instead doing enough offensively to complement their defense to win even if in the ugliest way possible. Friday’s 5A Division II playoff opener at the Reservation was no different.

The game started off looking like it was going to be a runaway blowout for the Indians. Gaffney returned the opening kickoff 84 yards to the Eagles’ 1 yardline, setting up an easy 1-yard TD run on the first play from scrimmage by Kendaris “Peanut” Bailey.

After trading three and outs, Eastside suffered a serious blow when their star tailback Lucas Tankersley had to be carted off the field with an apparent leg injury. With him out of the game, things were left in the hands of Eastside QB Peyton Schrader, who was able to orchestrate a few drives. The problem is that each time the Eagles got into the red zone, they were unable to keep the drives alive – turning the ball over on downs twice.

Ultimately, Gaffney was able to capitalize, building a 14-0 lead that turned into a 21-3 halftime lead. Indian running back Josiah Hill racked up 140 yards and 2 touchdowns on 24 carries. Justin Dawkins was the next nearest rusher with just 41 yards on 4 attempts. Bouton was 5 for 8 passing with 98 yards in the victory.

The Indians will have a tough test on the road in round 2, slated to take on the Greenwood Eagles at JW Babb Stadium.

Boiling Springs 16 Mauldin 14

Rematch. That was the 1 key thought about this game coming in. These 2 met back on week 1, with the Bulldogs, despite being fully healthy back then, letting a late lead slip away for a 21-14 loss.

This time, in spite of the familiarity with their opponent, BSHS had the added challenge of battling through a plethora of injuries. With more spite towards those injuries, they didn’t make for any difference in this game from the last.

The Bulldogs and Mavericks – who are 12 years removed from a contest in which the 2 sides combined to score 153 points in an 83-70 Mauldin win – once again found themselves in a defensive struggle that finally turned in Boiling Springs’ favor in the waning seconds. Trailing 14-9 with a minute and 34 seconds to play in the game, Imri Logan orchestrated a 74-yard drive that would be capped with a 9 yard rushing TD by Logan himself that came on a direct snap to Tamajae Williford out of the wildcat formation. Following the handoff, Logan took the sweep to the near sideline and hurdled his way in with just 5 ticks left in the game. That play would end up being the game winner as the Bulldogs overcame adversity to secure a 2nd round road date with Tom Knotts and the Dutch Fork Silverfoxes.

Logan tallied 115 passing yards on the night as well as 63 rushing. Kicker Alan Labra made a pair of field goals to help keep Boiling Springs in the game while TJ Collins had 8 tackles — one of which was a sack to lead the defense. Dennis Glenn jr also had a big big night with 6 tackles.

Elsewhere in 5A, Dorman and Byrnes both had first round byes. The Cavaliers will host Blythewood next week while the Rebels will welcome the Rock Hill Bearcats to the new Nixon Field.

Camden 38 Greer 20

The Yellow Jackets – fresh off 2 straight tests against the 2 teams that weigh heavily atop region 2-4A to wrap up the regular season – made the long trip down to Zemp Stadium in Camden for a date with the Bulldogs in the first round of the 4A playoffs.

Dawson Fowler, who has been a big part of the Jackets’ offense in spite of an injury, did not start once again, the nod instead going to Xavier Sammett. The freshman threw the ball 30 times, completing 13 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown while adding a rushing score on 9 touches for 51 yards. Fowler threw one pass – a 10 yard TD to leading pass catcher Tyler Hanson (7 snags, 78 yards). Zay Moseley also had a receiving score as part of a 3 snag 66 yard night. Running Back Calvin McCoy toted the ball 26 times to the tune of 93 yards.

Most of those numbers came over the final three minutes of the game, prior to which Greer trailed 38-6.

Pendleton 24 Broome 21

The Centurions proved a week ago that they could be successful on offense without senior QB Jameson Dearybury. Ty’Qwon Booker ran all over Chapman to help Broome secure a home playoff game. But with an opponent as tough on defense as the Pendleton Bulldogs, it would take another huge night from Booker to pull off an upset.

The Centurions took the lead with 21 ticks left in the opening quarter on a 4 yard keeper from Brayden Simpson. Pendleton responded with 14 unanswered over the next 5 minutes and Broome later got back into the scoring column – once again with just under 30 seconds to play in the half, but missed the extra point – which played a small factor in the end.

With the 2 sides knotted at 21 a piece, the Centurions had a shot to reclaim the lead coming up on the final minute, but Roger McGee missed the 25 yard fieldgoal, leaving the Bulldogs the opportunity to go downfield and kick a go-ahead triple of their own. They did not miss from 32 yards out with :22 to play, and Broome was unable to answer.

The Centurion offense mustered 432 yards of total offense. Brayden Simpson was 13-18 passing for 129 yards with 1 TD and 2 picks to go with 15 rushes for 114 yards and 2 rushing TDs. Ty’Qwon Booker tallied 30 rushes for 176 yards to complement 4 catches for 20 yards. He also had a 2 point conversion. Aayden Hemphill was the lone other Broome player with a touchdown – a 13 yard reception.

Southside Christian 55 Chapman 14

While the score is indeed lopsided and the Panthers have mercifully seen their first 1-win season since 2008 come to an end, this game is newsworthy because there was a change at the quarterback position for them this week. Bryson Cothran, the senior who had the reins of the Panthers’ offense all season long up to this point, decided to depart from the program, which meant that Chapman would be led by a freshman – Ashton Moore.

He was frequently in situations where he was flushed from the pocket and running for his life, but he finished the night 25 for 45 passing with 207 yards and a touchdown. Four different Panther receivers were in double figures, led by Taylor Rogers with 7 catches for 59 yards.

In the end, Chapman mustered a late TD with :36 left in the game to make this one look better, but make no mistake – the Sabres dominated, exactly as most expected.

In the rest of the 3A ranks, Mountain View Prep survived a late push from St Joe’s in which they had to prevent a go-ahead 2 point conversion to hang on for a 28-27 win. Woodruff took care of business against West Oak in a 49-7 triumph while Crescent handled Union County 52-14. MVP will travel to Crescent next week for their second matchup of the year with the Tigers in Iva. Woodruff will host the Christ Church Cavaliers next week.

Fairfield Central 50 Chesnee 21

The Eagles drew first blood with 3:49 to play in the first quarter via a 9-yard TD run by Evan Reece-Lawter. They bookended that by scoring the game’s last points with :31 to play in the game on a 47 yard touchdown run by Blake Cochran.

The problem is that they were outscored 50-7 in between those touchdowns as the Griffins cruised their way to the 2nd round.

The Eagles relied heavily on their rushing attack in this game, with 211 yards accumulated on the ground. Cochran led the way with 2 scores and 119 yards on 10 carries. Reece-Lawter added 50 yards on 12 rushing attempts.