Knights eyeing big finish in region play

By Rob Gantt

Special to the HSSR

GOOSE CREEK – The Stratford High School football team fought hard in its Region 7-5A opener and nearly pulled off a miraculous comeback, but the Knights had to settle for a 30-22 loss at Berkeley High School Oct. 4 in Moncks Corner.

The Knights are the defending league champions and will try to get on track Oct. 11 at home against visiting Lucy Beckham, which moved into the region from Class 4A. They go to Cane Bay Oct. 18, host Wando Oct. 25 and Goose Creek Nov. 1.

The Berkeley loss dropped Stratford to 2-4 overall. The Knights were coming off back-to-back wins against Socastee (23-17) and Colleton County (41-14).

Junior quarterback Jachin Davis continued a strong season against the Stags, rushing for two scores and passing for another. He reached paydirt on the ground from 1 and 28 yards out and connected with senior Kerwin Squire on a 46-yard touchdown pass. Davis passed for 145 yards and finished with 108 yards on the ground.

Stratford trailed 30-12 with under two minutes left, but mounted a rally to scare the home team. Senior linebacker Javien Salters broke through to record a safety and the Davis-Squire hookup pulled the Knights within 30-22. They then got the ensuing onside kick and moved into Berkeley’s 4 before Berkeley’s interception in the end zone on the final play.

Heading into the Lucy Beckham contest, Davis has passed for 1,016 yards and rushed for 359 yards, combining for 12 touchdowns.

Squire leads the Knights on the ground with 459 yards, while junior Francis Lloyd has chipped in 230 yards rushing. Junior receiver JQ Crosby has been a reliable target for Stratford, hauling in 22 passes for 385 yards. More targets are sophomore Jayden Lee, senior Jacob Deacon, senior Freddie Alston and junior Shawn Harris.

In the win over Colleton County, Davis passed for 253 yards and four touchdowns. He connected with Crosby on three scores and Lee on the other. On the ground, Davis scored twice.

Against Socastee, Davis tossed a touchdown pass to Crosby, while senior kicker Tyler Stament made three field goals. Running back Malachi Breland also reached paydirt for the Knights.