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WV High School Football Playoffs Roundup: SC Rolls; Bluefield, Fairmont into AA Semis

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Cincinnati commit Zeiqui Lawton and South Charleston beat Princeton on Friday to advance to the Class AAA semifinals. (Tom Bragg/WVSN)

CLASS AAA QUARTERFINAL

No. 2 SOUTH CHARLESTON 57, No. 10 PRINCETON 18: SC dominated at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball as offense and defense clicked to down the visiting Tigers and send the Black Eagles into the Class AAA state semifinals for the first time since their runner-up finish in 2014.

“We felt like our defensive line was better than what [Princeton] had up front and it showed tonight,” South Charleston coach Donnie Mays said. “They had to get the ball out quick and when you do that, you can limit what they’re trying to do offensively to screens and quick game.”

SC sophomore quarterback Trey Dunn threw for 339 yards and three touchdowns while also running for another touchdown in the win. Dunn was far from the only Black Eagle to shine on Friday as running back Mondrell Dean ran for two touchdowns and returned an interception for a score, freshman running back Amellio Miller scored twice while leading the team with 138 rushing yards on 11 carries, Donavin Davis caught two touchdown passes and receiver Shyleik Kinney took SC’s first offensive play 70 yards for a touchdown.

PHOTO GALLERY: SOUTH CHARLESTON CRUISES PAST PRINCETON IN CLASS AAA QUARTERS

Princeton sophomore quarterback Grant Cochran threw two touchdown passes Friday — one each to Ethan Parsons and Josiah Honaker — while Tiger standout Amir Powell also scored on a fumble return in the first quarter.

As good as South Charleston was on Friday, the Black Eagles had to overcome a mountain of self-inflicted mistakes against Princeton. SC committed 18 penalties for 148 yards, lost three fumbles in the first half (including the one Powell returned for a touchdown) and had four extra point attempts blocked.

“We were off for a couple weeks,” Mays said. “I expected us to be pretty sloppy at times and we saw that.”

South Charleston now waits to see who it will host in next week’s big-school state semifinal round. The Black Eagles will play the winner of this weekend’s Spring Valley-Musselman game scheduled for Saturday pending the COVID metrics map update. If Wayne County’s color-code does not improve, Spring Valley will be forced to forfeit and Musselman will be scheduled to visit SC next week.

CLASS AA QUARTERFINALS

No. 2 BLUEFIELD 33, No. 10 NORTH MARION 10: The Beavers raced out to an early lead and leaned on their defense to protect it and send Bluefield back to the Class AA final four.

Bluefield took a 19-7 lead after the first quarter on the strength of touchdowns by Jacob Martin, Ryker Brown and Brandon Wiley while the Huskies lone touchdown of the quarter and game came on a fourth-down pass from quarterback Brody Hall to standout junior receiver Tariq Miller.

The Beavers forced four turnover Friday — three in the first half — in the win against North Marion. Bluefield will host No. 6 Fairmont Senior next Saturday at Mitchell Stadium for a spot in the Super Six.

No. 6 FAIRMONT SENIOR 43, No. 14 INDEPENDENCE 15: Running back Kieshawn Cottingham accounted for four touchdowns while standout Polar Bear senior quarterback Gage Michael ran for a team-high 136 yards to go with a touchdown while also throwing for a score as Fairmont Senior cruised to a win against visiting Independence on Friday at East-West Stadium.

Independence standout running back Atticus Goodson led the Patriots with 107 yards on 22 carries, but Indy could never get into a groove on the road against the powerhouse Polar Bears. The win for Fairmont Senior sets up a semifinal grudge week at Bluefield next week. The Polar Bears and Beavers have met each of the last three postseasons — with the teams splitting state title game wins in 2017 and 2018 before Bluefield snapped Fairmont Senior’s 27-game win streak in last season’s Class AA semifinal round. It will also be the Polar Bears’ sixth-consecutive trip the the state semifinals.

 

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