Fort Mill staves off Clover for key region win
The Fort Mill Yellow Jackets knew a sixth-straight win against Clover would be a tall task. It wasn’t clear how difficult it would be until D’Angelo Coit’s interception ended the Blue Eagles’ last drive.
When the final knee was taken, Fort Mill left the turf at Bob Jones Stadium with a happy Homecoming crowd – and, more importantly – a key 38-30 Region 4-5A win over Clover.
“Last week (at Northwestern) took a lot out of us,” said Yellow Jackets coach Ed Susi. “I knew this was going to be one heck of a matchup. We made some mistakes, and the kids kept fighting through them. I’m just proud of our effort of coming back and staying with the game plan.”
Fort Mill (4-3, 1-1 Region 4-5A) overcame three penalties on its initial possession, finding pay dirt on a 55-yard strike from J.T. Marr to Sebastian Lach to begin the scoring. Clover (3-4, 0-2) quickly answered with a 37-yard Nick Sciba field goal to cut the home side’s advantage to 7-3. Fort Mill again converted on its next possession, stretching the margin to 14-3. Heze Massey then hauled in touchdown receptions on back-to-back drives, putting the Blue Eagles back in front by three.
Fort Mill scored the lone third-quarter points, as Marr punched in a two-yard run.
The final quarter proved just as eventful as the first.
Massey snagged his third touchdown of the night early in the fourth, cutting the Fort Mill lead to 28-23. A Ryan Heriot score moved the lead back to Yellow Jacket lead back to 12 with just over eight minutes remaining. Garrett Miller found Jaylin Lane from five yards to slice the home advantage back to five. Kyle Romenick knocked through a 23-yard field goal with 1:04 to play.
Clover had time for one final rally, and the Blue Eagles quickly marched past midfield. But Coit snagged the final Clover pass with 15 seconds to play, sealing the victory.
Turning point
Clover held a 17-14 lead midway through the second quarter, and found itself inside the Fort Mill 30 after forcing a Yellow Jacket punt and unfurling a nifty drive. The Blue Eagles fumbled after a short reception, however, and the Yellow Jackets recovered at their own 27.
Fort Mill wasted little time in cashing in the gift, swiftly marching 73 yards in nine plays over 2:20. A one-yard Lach scoring run on a pitch to the left side gave the Jackets a 21-17 advantage.
Critical
Lach’s star turn came at a perfect time for the Yellow Jackets. Fort Mill found itself without wide receiver and defensive back Grant Stevens due to injury, and Lach responded. The junior recorded eight catches for over 110 yards and a long touchdown, to go with a rushing touchdown.
“(It was) a big responsibility,” said Lach of his performance. “You’ve gotta’ fill the shoes of someone bigger than you, and you’ve gotta’ keep fighting.”
Star contributors
Marr was key too, completing 23-of-31 passes for 277 yards for Fort Mill, throwing for a touchdown and running for another. Heriot added 14 carries for 102 yards and a score. Coit recorded two interceptions, the second keying the biggest Fort Mill defensive stop of the evening.
Massey recorded a monster night for Clover, grabbing 14 passes for 251 yards and three scores. His quarterback, Garrett Miller, was 27-for-40 for 314 yards and four scores. A number of those completions also went to Blue Eagle receiver Jaylin Lane, who caught eight for 66 yards and a touchdown.
On deck
Clover hosts Northwestern in a Region 4-5A contest. Fort Mill will travel to Rock Hill. Both games are scheduled for a 7:30 start.
Box score
Fort Mill 38, Clover 30
Clover 10;7;0;13;-; 30
Fort Mill 14;7;7;10;-; 38
SCORING SUMMARY
First quarter
FM – Sebastian Lach 55 pass from J.T. Marr (Kyle Romenick kick) 7:45
C – Nick Sciba 37 field goal 4:28
FM – Jackson Randall 1 run (Romenick kick) 1:23
C – Heze Massey 56 pass from Garrett Miller (Sciba kick) :35.1
Second quarter
C – Massey 25 pass from Jaylin Lane (Sciba kick) 7:35
FM – Lach 1 run (Romenick kick) :52.1
Third quarter
FM – Marr 2 run (Romenick kick) 7:34
Fourth quarter
C – Massey 29 pass from Miller (conversion failed) 9:59
FM – Ryan Heriot 28 run (Romenick kick) 8:13
C – Lane 5 pass from Miller (Sciba kick) 3:43
FM – Romenick 23 field goal 1:04
TEAM STATISTICS
C;FM
First downs;20;23
Rushes-yards;22-97;35-187
Passing;28-41-2;23-31-1
Passing yards;339;277
Fumbles-lost;3-2;1-1
Penalties-yards;6-72;10-89
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING Clover: Semaj Lakin 11-35, Garrett Miller 4-36, David Hall 6-18, Jaylin Lane 1-8. Fort Mill: Shayne Boyle 6-27, Ryan Heriot 14-102, Jackson Randall 9-21, Sebastian Lach 3-30, J.T. Marr 3-7.
PASSING Clover: Miller 27-40-2-314 yards, Lane 1-1-0-25 yards. Fort Mill: Marr 23-31-1-277 yards.
RECEIVING Clover: Blackmon Huckabee 4-24, Heze Massey 14-251, Lane 8-66, Lakin 1-0, Hall 1-(minus) 2. Fort Mill: Boyle 6-79, Caleb Smith 2-7, Lach 8-111, Bartow Keller 3-26, Ben Kellam 1-7, Heriot 2-31.
RECORDS Fort Mill 4-3 (1-1 Region 4-5A), Clover 3-4 (0-2).
This story was originally published October 6, 2017 at 11:07 PM with the headline "Fort Mill staves off Clover for key region win."