Both Groves (0-3) and Islands (0-3) entered Friday night’s contest winless, as both teams struggled to find an offensive rhythm. Groves had scored six points in three games, while Islands managed only 15.
Based on their prior performances, the Islands’ homecoming game had the preliminary makings of a slow night.
Instead, it was a fast-paced and entertaining battle in which Groves hung on to a 25-22 victory.
Groves’ Taff James ended a potential Island’s game-winning drive when he intercepted a pass on his own 20 with 17.6 seconds remaining. Islands drove to the Groves’ 25, but a high snap sent the ball back to the Groves’ 40-yard line.
Islands took possession after Groves couldn’t close out the game with a drive beginning on their own 27 with 4:40 left in the game. The Rebels struggled and also incurred two offside penalties and a delay of the game.
For Groves’ head coach, Calvin Wells, it was a special night. It could be the first step in turning the season around for the Rebels, who will look to find some chemistry among a good mix of players.
“This was a Super Bowl for us,” gushed Wells. “They worked, and that’s all that I can ask for. We just have to keep grinding. We have a young team and an old team with 15 seniors and a lot of freshmen and sophomores.
“One thing we didn’t have in the past was patience. We just have to slow it down and get it right. We have a great quarterback who can do a lot of things, and we also have a lot of veterans.
Groves took advantage of their second fumble recovery in the opening half and quickly pieced together a pair of scores 31 seconds apart.
Makei Brown capped a 13-play, 77-yard methodical drive down the field that took nearly nine minutes when he scored on a 15-yard scamper to open the scoring at 6-0.
After their fumble recovery. Groves’ quarterback senior Trenton Tukes threw a perfect 40-yard strike down the sidelines to Kemari Wright that gave the Rebels a 12-0 advantage just 35 seconds into the second quarter.
Tukes later connected with a wide-open Brown for a 30-yard connection that gave the Rebels an 18-8 halftime advantage with just 17.76 seconds left in the half. Islands’ Jayden Sutton scored on a 10-yard burst for the Sharks’ score.
Midway through the third quarter, Tukes scrambled away from pressure and found Kaleb Detty for a 28-yard score, and the Rebels had a seemingly commanding 25-8 lead with six minutes left in the third quarter.
But Islands refused to fold.
The Sharks took advantage of a bad punt to open a drive at the Grove 28. Six plays later, Carson Kurdys bullied his way into the end zone from four yards out to cut the gap to 25-14.
Islands’ defense then took over and bottled the Rebels on their own 13 due to a combined sack. From there, the Sharks’ Ethan McKinney ripped off 15 yards before he broke free for a 16-yard burst into the endzone that narrowed the gap to 25-22 with 4:55 left in the game.
Wells knows it wasn’t a perfect night, as the Rebels were hit with 14 penalties for 20 yards, mainly that took them out of drives. Still, his team walked away with their first.
“A win is a win,” he stated. “ We know we have some more things to work on.”
|
Groves 25, Islands 22 |
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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| GHS | 0 | 18 | 7 | 0 | 25 |
| IHS | 0 | 8 | 0 | 14 | 22 |
| First Quarter | |||||
| No Scoring | |||||
|
Second Quarter |
|||||
|
G- Makel Brown 15 run (kick failed) |
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|
G- Kemari Wright 40 pass from Trenton Tukes (run failed) |
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I - Jayden Sutton 10 run (Chet Bachman run) |
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|
G- Brown 30 pass from Tukes (run failed) |
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| Third Quarter | |||||
|
G- Kaleb Detty 30 pass from Tukes (D.J, Ferraro kick) |
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Fourth Quarter |
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|
I - Kurdys four run (run failed) |
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|
I- Ethan McKinney 16 run ( Sutton run) |
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|
RECORDS: GHS (1-2/1-3), Islands (0-3/0-4) |
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FINAL SCORES
WEEK 5
Sept. 12, Thursday
Bethesda 42, Hilton Head Prep 12*
Sept. 13, Friday
Richmond Hill 42, Wayne County 0
Effingham Co. 35, Bradwell Institute 148*
Lakeside-Evans 49, South Effingham 7*
Pierce County 48, New Hampstead 7
Jenkins 51, Beach 7*
Calvary Day 48, Windsor Forest 7*
Groves 25, Islands 22*
Southeast Bulloch 35, Johnson 13*
Long County 22, Liberty County 14*
Savannah Christian 28, Fellowship Christian 7
Portal 20, Bryan County 8*
Metter 49, Savannah 0*
Sherwood Christian 56, Memorial Day 6*
Coastal Homeschool 56, Georgia School for Innovation & Classics 20*
Sept. 14 (Saturday)
Augusta Prep at St. Andrew's* 1 PM
Photo Credit: Magnolia Manor Creations
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- Dr. David Sedory: Benedictine Military, Bradwell Institute, Liberty County
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- Dr. Thomas Alexander: Savannah Country Day, St. Vincent's
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