By John Epps
The Reservation
Gaffney, SC
Penalty palooza took place Friday night at The Reservation, but despite the high volume of flags, the Indians were able to take care of business disposing of South Pointe 27-21. You can penalize a lot of things on the football field, but you cannot penalize the 5th gear possessed by Gaffney WR Emazon Littlejohn, who was the star of the night for the Indians, scoring 2 TD’s.
The defensive and offensive penalties for both sides controlled the first quarter until South Pointe’s Aidan Turner burst through a major hole on 4th & 1 to get the Stallions on the board first. The Gaffney defense rebounded well though; early in the 2nd quarter a beautiful interception over the middle would lead to the Indians own 4th & 1 TD conversion when Jaiden Mcdowell scored from 4 yards out to tie the ball game. Emazon Littlejohn already reeled in a Sportscenter worthy catch down the sideline in the 1st quarter, but with 2:05 left in the 1st half the South Pointe DB made it a little easier for Littlejohn by selling out and diving to break up a Riley Staton dart over the middle to give the Indians their first lead
of the night at 14-7. The Stallions responded with a kick return just shy of midfield, but an overthrown pass to an open Mason Picket-Hicks proved costly as the South Pointe drive ran out of gas just before the end of the 1st half. As both teams retreated to the locker rooms, South Pointe had to feel hopeful after a 1st half of numerous costly offensive penalties and a few overthrown open WRs. The opportunity was certainly there for the taking, but the 2nd half would require both sides to play a more disciplined football.
The opening 2nd half drive for South Pointe turned into a nightmare when the Stallions faced a 4th down at the Gaffney 45-yard line. Stallion QB Malachi Marshall would get pressure up the middle and is sacked, but even worse, loses the football which would turn into a greased pig that evaded the grasp of anyone until Gaffney finally secured the loose ball all the way down to the South Pointe 20 yard line. The South Pointe defense would force a 3 & out, but Gaffney’s Jake Spadavecchia converts on the first of his two crucial 30+ yard FGs. South Pointe’s next drive would be their most impressive drive of the 2nd half, as the Stallion offensive line was able to open sizeable holes against a strong front 7 of Gaffney. The Stallions would go 60 yards in just 1:47 to close the gap back to one score at 17-14 when Turner found the endzone from 11 yards out, nearly untouched. Unfortunately for South Pointe, the Indians made sure to fill those running lanes the rest of the night. Spadavecchia spared no excess length on his 38-yard FG on the ensuing Gaffney drive, to close out the first 3 quarters of play, with a 20-14 Gaffney advantage.
The beginning of the 4th quarter would deal South Pointe another heavy blow. Gaffney would penalize themselves into a 3rd & 21, but once again Littlejohn would step up with an excellent catch and then show off his elite speed to race another 30+ yards to the endzone. The Littlejohn TD came with 10:40 still left in the game, but the 2-score advantage was a tough pill to swallow for a South Pointe team that moments ago had Gaffney on the ropes with a 3rd and long. The Stallions knew they were still in the game, as they would convert a 4th & 4 at their own 40 yard line. Three plays later, South Pointe would execute as good of a hook & ladder play as you will see. Picket-Hicks would be on the receiving end of the pitch and would not be caught before racing 36 yards to the endzone, pumping major life into the South Pointe sideline. The Stallion defense would give their offense another chance by holding Gaffney in check. Another South Pointe 4th down conversion with 2:52 left in the contest had the Stallions in Gaffney territory with a serious chance to get a go-ahead score and leave little time for the Indians to respond. Now of course, that would be if South Pointe could commit no penalties, and tonight that would be too much to ask. The Stallions put themselves into a 3rd & 26 situation at the Gaffney 44 yard line, when Marshall put a ball 20 yards downfield on the money, that could not be hauled in. The first try at 4th & 26 would result in a Gaffney pass interference call, but that penalty was negated by an illegal procedure on South Pointe. Sounds familiar does it not? On the final offensive play for South Pointe, Marshall would not be able to connect with an open receiver inside the 10 yard line and an Indian DB would snag the interception to seal the win and put a final rejection on South Pointe’s upset bid.
Impressive win to knock off a team as talented as South Pointe, but Gaffney will walk away from this game knowing that they will need to play a little sharper and more disciplined down the road if they want to get to Orangeburg in December. Next week the Stallions will return home where they will play host to 3A foe the Chester Cyclones, while Gaffney will head north to take on Charlotte’s Mallard Creek.
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