By Lonnie Turner
Junior quarterback Avery McCall and Senior wide receiver Chrishon Jordan connected on scoring passes of 68, 29 and 48 yards to lead the Dillon Wildcats to a 49-14 win over the Lake View Wild Gators Friday night in the oldest football rivalry in the state of South Carolina.
Dating back to 1929, the Wildcats now hold a 53-32-1 record over the Gators, but during the early years, Lake View won the first six meetings before Dillon eked out a 7-6 win in 1935. The late Billy Page was responsible for obtaining and keeping all the football records of Lake View before he passed away a few years back and all those records continue to be printed in the Wild Gator football program.
McCall finished the evening with 273 yards passing on 12 completions of 17 attempts to run his two game completion record to 26 of 34 for 513 yards and six touchdowns. He also has a rushing touchdown to his credit this season. Jordan’s numbers for the night were 201 yards on five catches and C.J. Sowells caught four for 42 yards.
Lake View had good success running the football against the Wildcats, amassing 296 yards on the ground while chalking up 15 first downs. Senior running back Reco Brown, a 6’3” 195-pounder, rushed only three times for 115 yards, including a 65-yard run early in the fourth quarter for a touchdown. Another senior running back, Christian McDaniel, who stands 6’3” and tilts the scales at 205. He put Lake View’s first six on the board with only 50 seconds gone in the second quarter with a 13-yard run to cap an 80-yard drive in 13 plays, all on the ground. Place kicker Hamza Al-Sardiah was perfect on both tries for the PAT. Junior quarterback Weston Rogers threw only three times, all to Brown, completing two for a net 37 yards to give the Wild Gators 333 yards in total offense. The team’s 95 yards on seven kickoff returns gave Lake View a total of 428 yards.
With McCall’s 273 yards through the air and 125 yards on the ground, the Cats put a total of 398 yards on the book in total offense.The running game was led by sophomore speedster Johnny Allen, rushing three times for 77 yards, including his fourth touchdown of the season on a 68-yard run on the first play of the second quarter. He scored again on a 5-yard run near the end of the third quarter to give the Cats a 42-7 lead. The other touchdown for the Cats was on a 43-yard punt return by Eri’reon Hayes late in the second quarter.
With Dillon reserve quarterback Austin Moody on the sidelines with his hand injury, senior Que Bethea relieved McCall as signal caller and led the team for its final score with 4:53 left in the game. Starting at their own 39-yard line, the Wildcats marched 61 yards in 10 plays with freshman running back Malcolm Purnell scoring on his second carry of the game.
The Wildcats will host the Latta Vikings this coming Friday night with the kickoff scheduled for 7:30.
