Lake View will play for the state title this coming Saturday after a win over Bamberg-Ehrhardt which clinched the Lower State title. Here is a photo gallery by Johnnie Daniels/The Dillon Herald, sponsored in part by Miller Plumbing and Electric.
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Johnnie Daniels/The Dillon Herald
Click once to bring the photo into a single screen, and then again to enlarge.
By Craig Brown
The Lake View High School Wild Gators defeated the Red Raiders of Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School 20-7 in Class 1A football Friday night in Lake View.
The win gives Lake View its 18th Lower State Championship.
Lake View will be in Columbia Saturday at Benedict College to face Southside Christian with game time set for 11:30. The Wild Gators will be seeking their 11th championship title.
Friday night’s game in Lake View was one of the most exciting games that I have seen in recent history. Both teams were very evenly matched so I will give the margin of victory to Daryl King and his talented coaching staff.
The Red Raiders made two costly mistakes on special teams. A trademark of the Wild Gators is mistakes like those are almost non-existent.
After a hard-fought first quarter neither team had found the end zone.
With 9:55 left in the second quarter Gator DB Da’Correus Ford intercepted a Red Raider pass at the Gator 33-yard line. The Red Raider defense forced a punt and appeared to be out of trouble until the punt bounced off of a Red Raider return man’s thigh.
The punt hit solid but the return man did not react and watched a Gator run by him and recover the ball on the Red Raider 14-yard line.
Lake View quarterback Derrick Bethea took advantage of the situation and found receiver Braxton Dimery open and connected with the 14-yard touchdown pass.
The conversion failed holding the Wild Gator lead to 6-0 with 5:21 left in the second quarter.
Following the kickoff the Red Raiders moved the ball to the Gators’ 11-yard line.
The Wild Gator defense stiffened and kept the Red Raiders out of the end zone to take the 6-0 lead into the half time break.
Late in the third quarter Red Raider quarterback Treyton Still finished the long drive with a six-yard touchdown run. James McIntosh added the point after kick to give the Red Raiders a 7-6 lead with 4:42 left in the third quarter. The third quarter would end with this score. The third quarter ended with the Gators threatening on the Red Raider 14.
On the first play of the fourth quarter Gator running back Adarrian Dawkins broke several tackles on the 14-yard touchdown run. The conversion failed but the Gators were back on top 12-7 with 11:54 left in the fourth quarter.
Arkadius Benjamin’s kick-off landed near the Red Raider’s 4.
The Gators would fumble the ball back to the Red Raiders on the eleven-yard line. The Red Raiders were unable to advance the ball past the 30 and had to punt.
With 2:46 left in the fourth quarter the Gator defense stopped the Red Raiders on the 45-yard line. The Gators drove toward the end zone with Dawkins getting his second TD on a six-yard run with 35 seconds left in the game. Michael McInnis added the two-point conversion run to increase the Wild Gator lead to 20-7.
On offense for Lake View: Adarrian Dawkins had 70 yards on 16 carries with two touchdowns and caught a pass for 11 yards, Ja’Correus Ford had 70 yards on 13 carries, Marquise Johnson had 60 yards on two carries, Derrick Bethea was 4 of 8 passing for 39 yards and a touchdown. Michael McInnis caught two passes for 14 yards and had 12 yards on two carries, and Braxton Dimery caught a 14-ard touchdown pass.
On defense, Michael McInnis, Hunter Norton, Raekwon McNeil and Marquise Johnson had six tackles with two tackle assists each with McInnis adding an interception; Sevon Nichols and Michael McDaniel had four tackles, two assists each; Braxton Dimery had three tackles with an assist; Adarrian Dawkins had two tackles; and Da’Correus Ford, Arkadious Benjamin, Wendall Powell, and Raejon Rogers added a tackle and assist each with Ford adding an interception.
The Lake View Wild Gators, 10-time football state champions, will face the Southside Christian Sabres this Saturday, December 5, at 11:30 a.m. at Benedict College at the Charles W.Johnson Stadium, 1920 Two Notch Road, Columbia, S.C.
The Lake View Wild Gators won football state titles in 1938, 1961, 1970, 1971, 1981, 1989, 1991, 1997, 2006, and 2016.
Through Friday, November 27, the Lake View Wild Gators racked up 264 points of scoring while holding their opponents to 99 in the abbreviated 2020 football season. The Wild Gators defeated Green Sea Floyds (the defending 1-A state champions) at their location on Friday, September 28, 28-14. In the second week of play, Lake View hosted East Clarendon on October 2 and came away with a 42-14 win. On October 9 the Wild Gators traveled to Johnsonville and returned home with a 30-20 victory. The Wild Gators were at home on October 16 and defeated Timmonsville 46-8. Hannah-Pamplico traveled to Lake View on October 23 and suffered a 42-8 loss. On October 30, Lake View defeated Waccamaw, 42-7. In playoff action on November 13, Lake View defeated Allendale-Fairfax 26-6. On Friday, November 20, the Wild Gators traveled to Hemingway to face Carvers Bay and returned with a 30-22 hard-fought battle. This past Friday, Lake View faced a tough Bamberg-Erhardt team in Lake View and came away with a 20-7 win for the Lower State Championship. The Lake View offense has proven that it can adjust to most any type of defense as evidenced in the numbers posted on the scoreboard. The defense has also proven to be effective while holding their opponents to low offensive scoring.
Southside Christian Sabres have racked up 349 points against their opponents while allowing only 60 points.
Southside Christian is sporting an 9-0 record with a win on October 2 at home over Dixie by a score of 42-0. Next came a 47-20 victory on October 9 at McCormick. Calhoun Falls Charter fell on October 16 by a score of 58-0 while Ware Shoals suffered a 56-14 defeat. Whitmire lost on November 6 by a score of 55-6. On November 13 Johnson lost 50-6. On November 20 Blackville-Hilda lost 24-7. On November 27 Southside Christian Sabres defeated the Lamar Silver Foxes 17-6 to capture the 1-A Upper State Championship.
Lake View Head Coach King stated, “this state championship game is a testament to how hard these kids have worked all season long. The fan base has been great and our coaching staff has worked hard to prepare our team for a tough game against the former 2-A great football team, the Southside Christian Sabres.”
Let’s all go to the game and support our Lake View Wild Gators!
