Second-year Hillgrove edges Southeast

Published 12:43 am Saturday, September 15, 2007

POWDER SPRINGS — For 45 strenuous minutes, the Southeast Raiders rode the sturdy legs of running back Trea Williams.

Down by one point to the Hillgrove Hawks with 2:53 left in the game, the offense turned to the arm of sophomore quarterback Blane Beaver.

The youngster led the Raiders to Hillgrove’s 10-yardline with less than a minute remaining, completing four passes for 60 yards. But on third and eight from the opponent’s 10, Beaver made his first gaffe of the cool evening, fluttering the game-sealing interception to Marquese Williams to give Hillgrove the 21-20 win.

Southeast was in relatively easy field-goal range with the clock ticking under 30 seconds, but without any timeouts remaining coach Jon Lovingood felt the team needed to pass.

“We had to throw in that situation because we didn’t have a timeout left,” Lovingood said. “It was a deal where the quarterback needed to hit the tight end — a big 6-5 kid — or have an incomplete pass to get the field goal team in. He got pressure in his face pretty good, floated it and the kid made the play.”

Despite the mistake, Lovingood stood behind his young quarterback, who was visibly upset after the game.

“He’s a sophomore in his first football game in the fourth quarter with no time outs and he brought us 80 yards,” Lovingood said. “You can’t ask anymore than that.”

Southeast (0-1, 0-0 Region 7-4A) was essentially playing its first game of the season, idle with a bye week and having the first game against Cass cancelled due to inclement weather. Hillgrove (3-0), a school which opened in the fall of 2006, was playing in its first full season, albeit a non-region schedule.

Hillgrove coach Phillip Ironside said the win was “huge, just huge” for the Cobb County school just southwest of Kennesaw.

“Last year, we just got blown out every time we played a varsity game,” Ironside said. “Southeast is a good team. They came out and got physical and we had a hard time stopping them. They stopped the option and our kids kept persevering and persevering and didn’t quit.”

Williams was the workhorse for the Raiders, carrying 24 times for 130 yards and two touchdowns along with a two-point conversion for good measure.

“We played pretty good, we just made a couple of mistakes at the end,” Williams said. “We played hard. We’re just looking forward to Gordon Central next week. We need to work harder and try to get a win.”

The Raiders‚ swarming defense did an admirable job of containing shifty quarterback Synjin Days, also a sophomore. Days ran 20 times for 119 yards — he only broke free for one long run on the night. On the third play of the game, Days got loose for a 59-yard gain on third-and-nine to the Raiders’ 5 -yard line. Two plays later, Cameron Holtzclaw scored the first touchdown of the game.

Southeast went three-and-out on the ensuing possession and was forced to punt. Hillgrove once again drove the field to the Southeast’s 8 .

On the quarterback keeper, Days came around the right end and fumbled. Southeast’s Blake Powers scooped up the ball, which was tantalizingly resting on the 7-yard line, and raced 93 yards untouched for Southeast’s first points of the season.

Southeast would add to the scoreboard in the second half.

Aided by a 54-yard reverse run by Damond O’Neal, Southeast had a first-and-goal from the 5. The Raiders were stuffed twice at the 1 and went for the touchdown. On fourth down, Williams ran behind right tackle John Wetherington for the go-ahead touchdown.

Days would then direct a 13 play, 80-yard scoring drive before the half, calling his own number on a quarterback keeper for a 6-yard touchdown to put Hillgrove up 14-12 at the half.

On the Raiders’ second possession of the second half, the drive turned into the Williams show. Williams rushed seven times — including five straight carries — and punched the ball in from the 1 yard line to lift Southeast to the 18-14 lead. His ensuing two-point conversion gave the Raiders a six-point lead.

Days then directed a 64-yard scoring drive, capped by Deverauex Scott’s 1-yard touchdown run with the extra point staking Hillgrove to the 21-20 lead.

“Our kids kept fighting,” Lovingood said. “We had every chance in the world to quit, but we didn’t stop.”