TABOR CITY — Southeastern Conference Co-Champions South Columbus came out Friday night on a mission, and took the first round victory over West Bladen 38-0 in the 3A playoffs.
Their mission was to quash the Knights hopes of a close game like the previous one and they were successful. South Columbus had to rally in the fourth quarter to beat the Knights 35-24 a few weeks earlier.
South Columbus came out strong early as Easton McPherson found the end zone on the second play of the game with a 79-yard gallop to the end zone. Oscar Valdez added the extra point to make it 7-0 with 11:42 left in the first quarter.
West Bladen responded with a long drive that stalled out inside the Stallions 20-yard line. The Stallions went back to McPherson on the same counter play and he carried it 65 yards to the Knights 17-yard line. Jackson Greene passed to Kameron Johnson for a touchdown pass on the next play to put the score 14-0 with the Valdez extra point.
West Bladen continued to see their night spiral into doom as the Stallions blocked the Knights punt, leading to another Stallions score. Briar Johnson scored one yard away, pushing the score to 21-0 with 5:59 left in the first quarter. Johnson showed off his defensive prowess a few seconds later, elevating the Stallions’ lead to 28-0 in the first quarter.
South Columbus held West Bladen to a three and out on its next drive. The Stallions drove the ball 59 yards down the field, capped off by another McPherson seven-yard touchdown run. Valdez kicked the extra point to give South Columbus a 35-0 advantage with 11:16 left in the second quarter.
The clock ran for the rest of the game due to sportsmanship rules. Whenever a team gets a 35-point advantage in a football contest, the rules state the clock must run continuously. The Stallions added a Valdez field goal in the fourth quarter to make the final score 35-0 South Columbus.
South Columbus offense was paced by Easton McPherson with 87 yards and two touchdowns. With the win, the Stallions move on to the second round of the 3A playoffs and will travel to Northeastern (7-3).
The Eagles are the defending 2A Eastern Champions and are no strangers to the Columbus County area. The Eagles eliminated Whiteville 24-14 last year in the 2A Eastern Championship. West Bladen finishes its season 2-9. Ahmarie White led the Knights with 97 yards rushing on 17 carries.
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