CHOCOWINITY — They say the true mark of a great team is finding a way to win no matter what. Southside, as it looks forward to its eastern regional final showdown with No. 1 Plymouth, has shown its ability to do just that in its last two outings.

The No. 2 Seahawks started their foray into the state football playoffs with a lopsided victory over Southeast Halifax. They scored three touchdowns in the opening period and cruised to a 51-6 win. Lawrence Brown and Brandon Sullivan each ran in a pair of touchdowns to lead the offensive effort.

Since then, they’ve had to climb back into games to keep their season alive. The ability to fight through adversity from start to finish has been a focal point since the beginning of the season. The efforts on that front have come to fruition and it’s helping separate Southside in its pursuit of a championship.

“What it says is that we’re a team,” said head coach Jeff Carrow after Southside’s third-round win. “We’re not a group of individuals. We’re a team. I told them that at the beginning of the year. We’re not going to win ball games if we’re not a team all the way through. For seniors to lead and everybody else to step up, we’ve got to play this ball game as a team. That’s the only way we’re going to be successful.”

Southside went into halftime of its second-round game with Northampton County tied at 28 apiece. Big plays proved to be the Seahawks’ kryptonite. Ja’Quan Buffaloe scored on a 53-yard run and made a 56-yard reception for another touchdown. With the exception of a 48-yard passing score in the second half, they deprived the visitors of most chances to pick up sizeable chunks of yardage. That turnaround in the latter 24 minutes opened the door for Brown and Matt Baxter to score twice within three minutes to win the game.

Fast forward a week and Southside found itself trailing North Edgecombe 16-0 before its offense had a chance to trot onto the field. Brown and Baxter, the team’s leaders out of the backfield, were eager to get out there and start erasing the deficit. They jumpstarted the offense almost immediately by carrying the Seahawks right into the red zone, allowing Sullivan to scurry six yards for the team’s first touchdown.

That spark carried over to the defense. The visiting Warriors led 24-14 at halftime, but were held off the scoreboard in the second half. The defense was able to force turnovers on two of North Edgecombe’s more pivotal plays of the game. Antwoin Pittman ripped off a long run, hoping to answer Southside’s third-quarter touchdown that made it a one-possession game. He fumbled the ball forward as he was tackled, negating the gain and giving Southside an opportunity to take the lead. Brown converted on the chance with a 12-yard touchdown catch from Johnny Sullivan.

The Warriors found themselves down 36-24 with in the fourth quarter. They were three yards shy of a score, likely hoping for a touchdown and then an onside kick recovery. Teddy Minor and Hunter Sparks forced a fumble and recovered to give Southside a chance to let the clock bleed dry.

“(It proves) if we put on the pressure, we can stop them no matter who it is,” Sparks said. “That’s two games in a row we’ve put on the pressure at the goal line and we pulled it out … We put it all together. The offense was on key and the defense got the shutout in the second half. We had to put it all together and we did in the second half.”

Indeed, the Seahawks have been a strong team in the second half. The defense has made small, albeit key adjustments to limit the opposition and open the door for the offense to takeover. Moreover, the offense, which has almost exclusively moved the ball on the ground, is unafraid to change things up. Carrow and company noticed North Edgecombe stacking the box to halt the likes of Brown and Baxter, which allowed the Seahawks to take to the air for a fourth-down conversion and Browns aforementioned touchdown catch.

“It’s just the feel,” Carrow said after the game. “We’ve got to mix it up a little at this point and we’ve got to execute when we do.”

No matter the scenario, the players are buying into their system and it’s making all the difference. Whether they build an early lead or start to fall behind, they stick to the philosophy Carrow has preached all season.

“Coach (Carrow) told us it’s going to be no easy walk,” Brown said. “The past couple of teams we’ve played have been really good teams. Coach told us to ground and pound and that, in the end, it’s going to go in our favor. We believed in it. He pushed us hard in practice … We come into the game and see why.”

The competition only continues to get tougher. Plymouth has allowed just 19 points in its three playoff games thus far, all while its offense piled on the points. The Vikings, who have the advantage of hosting the matchup, will challenge the Seahawks in every facet of the game. If they are to continue to find ways to win, they may not have the luxury of waiting until the second half to put things together.