Class A semis have St. Joe's at Christ Church and Johnsonville at Bamberg-Ehrhardt

      Sumter – The two teams that played for the SCHSL Class A football state championship last season – Christ Church and Johnsonville – are within a game of doing the same this year. However, each has a formidable foe to get past first on Friday.

         Christ Church, the defending state champion, will play host to Region 1 foe St. Joseph’s for the upper state title, while defending lower state champion Johnsonville will be going on the road to take on Bamberg-Ehrhardt.

         The two winners will advance to the state championship game. The Class A title game will be on Friday, December 1, beginning at 2 p.m. at South Carolina State University’s Oliver C. Dawson Stadium in Orangeburg.

         Let’s take a look at the two semifinal games:

         ST. JOSEPH’S (11-2) at CHRIST CHURCH (11-2)

         St. Joe’s finished third in Region 1 because its two losses came to region champion Christ Church and second place Southside Christian School. The Knights lost to the Cavaliers 35-21 and to SCS 35-14.

         St. Joseph’s exacted revenge on Southside with last week’s 27-14 third-round victory. The Knights hope to do the same against the Cavaliers, but St. Joe’s head coach Chris Goodman said his team will have to play a very good game to do so.

“I think we have to have ball control and limit big plays on defense,” Goodman said. “Winning the turnover battle will be needed as well. The Knights played really hard in a 35-21 game, so we need the ball to bounce our way some Friday night. The boys will have to let it all hang out!”

St. Joseph’s will be looking for a big game from fullback Brayden Johnson. The 5-foot-11-inch, 185-pound junior has rushed for 1,262 yards and 26 touchdowns on 232 carries.

Christ Church head coach Quin Hatfield said Johnson will be a focal point for his defense.

“Our defense has to keep their fullback from making big runs,” said Hatfield, whose team is ranked second in the High School Sports Report Class A Sweet 16 poll. “We have to limit his effectiveness.”

Junior running back Lucas Salgado has rushed for 698 yards and nine touchdowns on just 66 carries for St. Joe’s, which is ranked third. Five other Knights have between 167 and 272 rushing yards.

Junior quarterback Cade Alt is averaging less than eight pass attempts a game. He’s completed 47 of 98 passes for 942 yards and seven touchdowns against five interceptions. He’s rushed for 174 yards on 62 carries.

Senior Michael Poinsette is the leading receiver with 19 catches for 390 yards and three touchdowns. Salgado is next with seven catches for 113 yards and one touchdown. Salgado has also returned a kickoff for a score

         Senior middle linebacker Johnny Jaraczewski leads the defense. He has team highs with 102 tackles and 14 tackles for loss to go with two quarterback sacks and one interception.

         Senior defensive end Walker Wolfram leads St. Joe’s in sacks with six to go with 38 tackles and five TFLs, while senior outside linebacker Gabe Nelson leads in interceptions with three along with 42 tackles, nine TFLs and two sacks.

         Senior OLB Joe Patterson has 63 tackles, six TFLs and two sacks, and senior defensive end Brogan Poole has four sacks, five TFLs and 26 tackles.

         While the Knights’ offense revolves around the running game, Christ Church can both run and pass the ball quite well. The Cavaliers are averaging 194.2 passing yards per game while rushing for 141.5.

         The leader of the rushing attack is Shrine Bowl selection Dashun Reeder. The Army commitment has 220 of the team’s 303 carries for 1,509 yards and 22 touchdowns.

         Junior quarterback Tucker Hendrix has thrown for 34 touchdown passes and 2,198 yards while completing 111 of 174 passes. His top target is junior Jackson Repp with 52 catches for 1,272 yards and 23 touchdowns. Repp is also a force on special teams, returning two punts and one kickoff for scores.

         Senior Matthew Covington has 25 catches for 291 yards and three TDs, senior Luke Baumhofer has 20 catches for 319 yards and four scores, and sophomore Jude Hall has 17 catches for 387 yards and six TDs.

         “Our offense has to have a balanced attack,” Hatfield said. “We have to win the special teams phase.”

         The leading tackler on defense is senior middle linebacker Jake Good with 106. He also has eight TFLs, two sacks and two interceptions.

         Senior Patrick McMaster has a team high 12 TFLs among his 86 tackles and is one of three Cavaliers with a team high six sacks. Senior linebacker Cooper Hronchek and junior defensive end Will Marquet also have six sacks. Hronchek has 10 TFLs and 57 tackles, while Marquet has 50 tackles and eight TFLs.

         Covington, who plays cornerback on defense, leads in interceptions with four. Junior free safety Acie Hatfield has 69 tackles, two interceptions, four TFLs and nine pass breakups.

         JOHNSONVILLE (10-2) AT BAMBERG-EHRHARDT (12-1)

         These teams didn’t face off earlier in the season, but there will certainly be a revenge element involved for Bamberg-Ehrhardt. The Red Raiders, ranked No. 1 by HSSR, dropped a 14-7 decision to the Flashes in the second round of last year’s playoffs.

         B-E has reeled off 11 straight wins after falling to Denmark-Olar 22-15 in its second game. It has scored 508 points while allowing just 126.

         The Raiders are led offensively by junior quarterback Chanston Crosby. The Georgia State commitment has completed 167 of 208 passes for 3,102 yards and 25 touchdowns. He’s also rushed for six scores.

         Crosby has five outstanding receivers with which to work. Isaiah Johnson has a team high 53 catches and 1,024 yards to go with five TDs. Nigel Myers has 40 catches for 663 yards and five scores, Touchstone Energy Cooperatives Bowl selection Anthony Williams has 38 catches for 519 yards, Marcus Cann Jr. has 20 catches for 547 yards and two TDs, and Eric Lee has 20 catches for 457 yards and four TDs.

         The Raiders can also run the ball very effectively as well. Nick Folk leads the way with 1,528 yards and 22 touchdowns, while Touchstone Bowl selection Jamie Downing has 708 yards and six scores.

         Lee and Cann are explosive playmakers running the ball as well. Lee has 695 yards and three TDs on 45 carries, while Cann has 485 yards and three scores on just 25 carries.

         Downing and Williams were selected to the Touchstone Bowl for their defensive prowess. Downing, a linebacker, has 194 tackles, 35 TFLs, seven interceptions and four forced fumbles. Williams, a defensive back, has 59 tackles and eight picks.

         Jarvis Logan, a 6-4, 260-pound junior defensive end with an offer from Charlotte and interest from several Atlantic Coast Conference schools, has 65 tackles, 19 TFLs and six sacks. Senior nose guard Y’Zovian Washington has 89 tackles, 22 TFLs and a team high seven sacks.

B-E head coach Corey Crosby said the Raiders have to play a sound game to advance to the championship game.

“It's very important that we don't make the same mistakes twice,” he said. “That's a big part of improvement.. We’re going to have to win the battle for field position too.”

         Johnsonville, ranked fourth, comes into the game on an 8-game winning streak. It has played its best football in the playoffs, beating St. John’s 57-0 and Lake View 35-14 before edging Lamar 14-12 last week.

         “We are going up against a very good Bamberg Ehrhardt team,” said Johnsonville head coach Ken Cribb. “ We are going to have to play very sound in all three phases of the game.”

         The Flashes have senior 4-year starter Malik Shippy at quarterback. He has completed 93 of 160 passes for 1,474 yards and 21 touchdowns against just four interceptions. He’s also ran 69 times for 283 yards and four TDs.

         Senior Travis Wilson is the leading receiver with 31 catches for 612 yards and 12 touchdowns. Junior Quandrell Woodberry has 20 catches for 240 yards and two scores, while junior CJ Woodbury has 10 catches for 160 yards and two TDs, and senior running back Neal Martin has 10 catches for 140 yards.

         Martin leads the way in rushing with 1,200 yards and 16 touchdowns on 122 carries. Zaghe Davis has 659 yards and four scores on 79 carries.

         Johnsonville has the ability to keep offenses behind the chain. It has seven players in double figures in tackles for loss, three of those with more than 20.

         Junior outside linebacker Taysawn Brown has a team high 27 TFLs among his 92 tackles. Middle linebacker Wilson has 23 TFLs, 84 tackles and three sacks, and senior defensive tackle Payne Alford has 21 TFLs, a team high four sacks and 78 tackles.

         Junior OLB Landyn Cribb has a team 107 tackles to go with 18 TFLs, two sacks and two forced fumbles, senior OLB Luke Altman has 18 TFLs, 54 tackles and three sacks, OLB Martin has 88 tackles, 16 TFLs and three sacks and Bricen Howell has 77 tackles and 10 TFLs