South Florence gets first win under Braswell; Wilson improves to 2-1 while West Florence falls to 1-2
Bruins beat West Ashley 41-23, Wilson tops Darlington 33-30, West falls to Sumter 35-0
Florence – The football season for South Florence High School under first-year head coach Scott Braswell finally took a turn for the better on Friday, September 4.
The Bruins defated West Ashley 41-23 to get their first victory in three games. South, which played for four consecutive AAAA state titles under former head coach Drew Marlowe and winning two, were 0-2. South Florence lost to Hilton Head Island 38-21 and to James Island 34-14, both coming on the road.
Senior running back Cameron James has been the leader of the offense. James has rushed for 267 yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries. Senior quarterback De’Eric Davis has completed 14 of 27 passes for 122 yards while rushing for 82 yards and a score on 19 carries. The top pass catcher was senior Malik Robinson with seven receptions for 60 yards.
Thomas Wilson returned an interception for a touchdown for one of South Florence’s touchdowns against James Island. Another interception by Sammy Milton set up a touchdown run by James.
Up next for the Bruins will be archrival, West Florence, on September 11 in the Region 7-AAAA opener.
Braswell came to South Florence after serving as the defensive coordinator at perennial power Dutch Fork for several years under head coach Tom Knotts.
The Knights fell to 1-2 wtih a 35-0 loss to Sumter. Wesat lost to Carolina Forest 16-14 in the season opener before rebounding with a 49-38 triumph over Hartsville in Week 2.
In the road win over Hartsville at Kelleytown Stadium on Thursday, August 27, Matthew Benjamin rushed for four touchdowns.
Jeremiah Bryant added two more rushing scores, while Corey Patterson pulled down a TD toss form Markell Scott.
On defense, Evan Deas, Isaac Green and Jawaun Gamble all had interceptions for the Knights.
West Florence is in its second season under Chad Wilkes’ leadership. Wilkes won a state championship while the head coach at Oceanside Collegiate Academy.
Wilson. the other Florence school that is a member of Region 7, owns a 2-1 record after beating Drlington 33-30. The Tigers, in their second season under head coach Brian Wilson, lost to Hartsville 55-34 in their opener. They rebounded though with a 21-0 victory over defending AA lower state champion Hampton County.
All of the Tigers’ points came in the second half. Kayden Bethea broke off a 72-yard scoring run in the third quarter. Mark Law ran for the 2-point conversion to make it 8-0.
In the fourth quarter, Taylor Brand caught a 66-yard touchdown pass from Nabryson Eliott. The final touchdown came on a 5-yard run by Zyier Lyde. Brand kicked the extra point for the game’s final point.
The defense was led by Quiyon Bryant with 13 total tackles. Jordan Davis had seven tackles, including two tackles for loss, and Jabron McFadden had a team high three tackles for a loss. Joseph Wilson had two interceptions.
The Tigers will open their region schedule on September 18 on the road against Conway.
Coach Wilson believes the best is still yet to come for the Tigers.
“We installed a whole new offense so we’re still learning it,” he said. “Defense I can see that we’ve gotten better. The players have a better idea, knowing what I expect this season. I believe they are going to be rising to the occasion.”
