ROUNDUP: Laurence Manning blasts Wilson Hall 45-21 in David Rankin's much-delayed head coaching debut

         Manning – The much-delayed debut of David Rankin as the football head coach at Laurence Manning Academy finally happened on Friday. It couldn’t have gone much better.

Rankin, who was in the hospital several days last month after undergoing surgery on a hip and had been at home recovering for the last few weeks, was in the press fox wearing a headset and calling offensive plays at LMA’s Billy Chitwood Memorial Field for the Swampcats’ game against archrival Wilson Hall. All Laurence Manning did was roll to a 45-21 victory.

The Swampcats, who improved to 2-1 on the season, got on the scoreboard quickly. Quarterback Grainger Powell connected with wide receiver Scoop Dennis for a 39-yard touchdown pass just four minutes into the game.

LMA made it 14-0 on a 1-yard scoring run by AJ Dennis. It pushed the lead to 21-0 on an 8-yard touchdown run by Pierson Gamble just before halftime.

    However, the Barons, who fell to 3-2, were able to make it 21-7 at halftime. Quarterback Nolan Gooch connected with Blane Batt for a 78-yard scoring pass.

    LMA received the second-half kickoff and took away any hopes of a WH rally. Scoop Dennis scored on a 21-yard run to make it 28-7. A 12-yard run by AJ Dennis made it 35-7.

    Laurence Manning pushed the lead to 42-7 on a Jordan Hicks TD. Its final points came on a 29-yard field goal by Daniel Vargas.

    Wilson Hall’s other touchdowns came on an 80-yard run by Jack Gratz and

a 7-yard run by Helms Horton.

The Swampcats had a balanced rushing attack led by Hicks with 63 yards on eight carries. AJ Dennis had 10 carries for 55 yards, Gamble had 54 yards on 12 carries, and Scoop Dennis had three carries for 27 yards.

    Powell completed 11 of 17 passes for 174 yards with Scoop Dennis hauling in six of them for 108 yards.

East Clarendon 41

Hannah-Pamplico 0

Pamplico – East Clarendon High School closed out the non-region portion of its schedule with a dominating 41-0 win over Hannah-Pamplico on Friday at the H-P field.

The Wolverines, who improved to 3-2, had 387 yards of total offense while limiting the Raiders to 98 yards.

Shamar Graham rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries to lead the EC offense. Picasso Brown ran for 61 yards and a score on seven carries

Quarterback Gavin White hit on 6 of 11 passes for 159 yards and two scores. Pierson Kelly had a 76-yard touchdown catch, and Blease Hardy had a 55-yard TD reception.

Leading the EC defense was Ke’shaun Porter. He returned a fumble 20 yards for a touchdown to go with 10 total tackles, four tackles for loss, one quarterback sack and one pass breakup.

Cayden Ham returned an interception for a touchdown while coming up with six tackles, 1 TFL, one sack and one forced fumble.

North Myrtle Beach 41

St. James 24

Murrells Inlet – North Myrtle Beach exploded for 34 points in the second half on the way to a 41-24 victory over St. James on Friday at Shark Stadium in the Region 7-AAAA opener for both teams.

     The Chiefs remained undefeated, improving to 5-0. SJHS, which led 10-7 at halftime and 17-14 in the third quarter, fell to 2-3.

     Jaden Wilson rushed for 260 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries. Mason Walker, Jonathan Evans and Evan Barrett each ran for a touchdown.

     Walker also threw a TD pass, completing 5 of 8 for 66 yards. The TD pass was a 42-yarder to Jaden Chestnut, who had three catches for 55 yards.

     Quarterback Cody Peterson led SJHS by rushing for 109 yards on 17 carries and passing for 131 yards and two TDs. Jordan Grant rushed for 96 yards on 15 carries.

     Woods Herring had four catches for 63 yards, two of them touchdown catches.  

Saluda 49

Chester 3

Saluda – Saluda jumped out to a 21-0 lead after one quarter on the way to a 49-3 triumph over Chester on Friday at the SHS field.

Tristan Daniels led the Tigers by rushing for 147 yards and three touchdowns on 1 carries. Danny Johnson had 47 yards and a TD on six carries.

Avery Coyle threw two scoring passes, one a 49-yader to Daniels and the other 22 yards to Ceddion Springs.

The other touchdown came on a 67-yard kickoff return by Jaylen Bledsoe.

Scott’s Branch 55

Baptist Hill 28

Summerton – Scott’s Branch won its third straight game with a 55-28 triumph over Baptist Hill on Friday at Spann Field.

The Eagles, now 3-2, had two defensive touchdowns and one special teams score. Quintin Jackson returned an interception 57 yards for a TD, while Omari Lang had a 51-yard Pick 6. Keith Rogers had a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

Jackson also rushed for 128 yards and two scores on nine carries. Kaleb Minger completed 8 of 10 passes for 138 yards and a TD to Nyren Bowman, who finished with three catches for 98 yards.

Defensively, Kendall Green had five TFLs among his six tackles. Danny Ragin had six tackles, three TFLs, one sack and one fumble recovery.

The Bobcats fell to 2-2.

Lamar 30

Lee Central 0

Bishopville – Lamar handed Lee Central its first loss of the season with a 30-0 victory on Friday at Stallion Stadium in the Region 5-Class A opener for both teams.

The Silver Foxes, the defending Class A state runners-up, are now 4-1, the same as LCHS.

TJ Samuel led the LHS offense, rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. Jaquez Dargan had 66 yards on nine attempts, while Marquel Green had five carries for 30 yards and two TDs. Jackson Scott also had a scoring run.

DQ Green led the defense with six TFLs among his eight tackles. Nigerion Quillen had three TFLS, while Robert Cooper and Kenile Johnson had two apiece.

Clinton 61

Union County 6

     Clinton – Clinton jumped out to a 21-0 lead after one quarter and cruised to a 61-6 win over Union County on Friday at Wilder Stadium.

     The Red Devils, who improved to 3-1, led 47-6 at halftime. They rushed for 375 yards, spreading the wealth among several players. Leading the way was Angelo Cromer with 99 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. Cam Croft had 92 yards and a touchdown on three carries, and Camden Gregory had six carries for 40 yards and a score.

     Also running for a TD was Damajia Crooks. Owen Glenn completed 4 of 10 passes for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Jay Taylor and Cromer each had a 50-yard TD catch, while Mason Snider had one for 16 yards.

     Sondrell Worthy had a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown for the Yellow Jackets, who fell to 0-5.

     Loris 48

Atlantic Collegiate 6

Myrtle Beach – Loris scored 27 points in the fourth quarter to put the game away in a 48-6 win over Atlantic Collegiate Academy on Friday at Ashley Booth Field.

The Lions improved to 4-1 in winning their Region 6-AAA opener. The Armada fell to 2-3 and 0-1.

Deuce Stephens led the way for LHS, rushing for 196 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries. Quarterback Jayden Scott ran for 47 yards and a TD on eight carries while completing 6 of 11 passes for 133 yards and two scores.

Atonio James had two catches for 85 yards, one of them a 23-yard TD catch. Kenny King had a 10-yard TD catch.

Atlantic Collegiate’s touchdown came on a 74-yard interception return by Dante Grimes.

Ashley Ridge 52

Stratford 14

Summerville – Ashley Ridge picked up its first win of the season with a 52-14 triumph over Stratford in the Region 5-AAAAA opener for both teams on Friday at the ARHS field.

The game was tied 7-7 early in the second quarter before the Swamp Foxes, now 1-4, took control. They led 24-7 at halftime and opened a 38-7 in the third quarter.

The 1-4 Knights got a 30-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Lott to Malachi Breland and a 5-yard scoring run from Micah Adams.