By Thomas Grant Jr.
Last season ended with two teams in Region 4-5A playing for the Class 5A title.
This season, the region is off to a winning start. Five of the six teams in action in Week 0 came away victorious, four from the Lake Murray area.
Lexington opened the season with a 24-0 shutout of county rival Gilbert. The Sonic Friday Night Rivals Game of the Week saw three different players – Matthew McAuley, Cam Capel (off a halfback option pass by Deacon Dimarco) and new starting quarterback Brennan Carter – score touchdowns.
McAuley was named the Player of the Game.
The story of the game was the Wildcats’ defense. In handing the Indians their first shutout loss since 2015 against Airport, they held them to 88 total yards of offense.
It was nearly 400 yards less than what Gilbert averaged last season. The contest marked the debut of new head coach Ozzie Exume.
Lexington heads on the road for a non-region matchup with another Top 10 Class 4A opponent. This time, it faces 10th-ranked North Augusta in the first meeting between the two schools since 2017.
The series is tied at 7-7.
Over in “The Swamp,” River Bluff posted its most points in a season opener in the 48-34 win over Rock Hill.
Aaron Griffin brought the Gator fans to their feet early by returning the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown. River Bluff extended their lead to 15-0 following a 26-yard touchdown pass by Parker Murray to Lathen Smalls.
Murray finished 16-20 for 235 yards, with Smalls catching four passes for 111 yards.
After the Bearcats rallied to tie the game at 34-34, River Bluff closed out the game with 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. Hayden Myers and Trace Nettles, who finished with 136 rushing yards, both scored their second touchdowns of the game during the final six minutes.
Blaine Felder led the Gators with 10 tackles and Stephen Collier had an 83-yard interception return for a touchdown.
Over in Fort Mill, Chapin opened the Ryan Cole era with a high-scoring 47-37 victory over Catawba Ridge. The Eagles jumped out to a 16-0 lead in the first quarter after collecting a safety off an errant snap out of the endzone, the first of five touchdown passes by quarterback Brady Albro and a 50-yard halfback option pass by Cole Martin to Khalen Bostick.
Albro finished with 301 yards with Gaffney transfer Stone Furrey and Bostick each accounting for two touchdown passes. Martin also had a receiving and rushing touchdown to finish with 199 total yards.
On Saturday, White Knoll completed the Lake Murray team sweep with a 21-14 road victory over Camden. It was a matchup of last year’s state runners-up in Classes 5A and 3A, respectively.
Quarterback Landon Sharpe threw two touchdowns to match the Bulldogs’ point total through three quarters. Late in the fourth quarter, the Timberwolves completed a scoring drive capped by a 4-yard touchdown run by Tiyon Jennings with 1:40 left.
Newberry was also victorious in its season-opener against Union County. Bryce Satterwhite threw two touchdowns and B.J. Jones rushed for two scores in the 40-14 win. Up next is the annual rivalry matchup with Mid-Carolina, which looks to rebound from a 27-20 loss to Swansea.
The victory snapped a 16-game losing streak by the Tigers and was the first victory under new head coach Willie Fox.
S.C. PREP FOOTBALL MEDIA POLL
Class 5A
1. Dutch Fork (16) (0-0)
2. Gaffney (1) (0-0)
3. Northwestern (2) (1-0)
4. Summerville (1-0)
5. Irmo (1-0)
6. JL Mann (1-0)
7. White Knoll (1-0)
8. TL Hanna (1-0)
9. Sumter (1-0)
10. Spartanburg (1-0)
Others receiving votes: Hillcrest, Boiling Springs, Lexington, Fort Dorchester, Ridge View, Clover, Byrnes
Class 4A
1. Westside (19) (1-0)
2. South Florence (1-0)
3. Daniel (1-0)
4. Gray Collegiate (1-0)
5. Hartsville (0-0)
6. South Pointe (0-1)
7. Camden (0-1)
8. AC Flora (1-0)
9. Brookland-Cayce (0-0)
10. North Augusta (1-0)
Others receiving votes: Crestwood, Lancaster, May River, Hilton Head Island, Richland Northeast, Wren, Beaufort, Greer, Midland Valley, Gilbert
Class 3A
1. Belton-Honea Path (18) (1-0)
2. Dillon (1) (1-0)
3. Pendleton (1-0)
4. Oceanside Collegiate (0-1)
5. Marlboro County (1-0)
6. Mountain View Prep (1-0)
7. Woodruff (1-0)
8. Loris (1-0)
9. Chapman (0-1)
10. Christ Church (0-1)
Others receiving votes: St. Joseph’s, Newberry, Aynor, Broome, Keenan, Silver Bluff, Powdersville, Waccamaw, Hanahan, Orangeburg-Wilkinson, North Charleston
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
(All Games Start at 7:30 p.m.)
A.C. Flora at Chapin
Brookland-Cayce at River Bluff
Lexington at North Augusta
Sumter at White Knoll
Gilbert at Wilson
Newberry at Mid-Carolina
Feature Photo by www.lexingtonwildcats.com – Lexington running back/linebacker Matthew McAuley
