Southside gets first win, Pungo rolls, Washington, Northside fall in league play

Published 1:43 am Saturday, October 12, 2024

By Jason O. Boyd

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WASHINGTON, N.C. – It was a split night for the four Beaufort County high school football teams.

While Northside and Washington lost conference battles, Southside won its first game in its league opener while Pungo Christian rolled to another win.

 

Southside 47, Pamlico County 26

BAYBORO, N.C. —A big third quarter helped Southside beat Pamlico County in its Coastal Plains Conference opener.

The Seahawks (1-6, 1-0 CPC) led 21-20 at the half before pulling away. MyQuan Clark, who finished with 292 yards and five touchdowns on 14 carries, scored on runs of 54, 52 and 37 yards as Southside jumped to a 41-20 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Clark also had an 82-yard touchdown run at the start of the game and a 7-yard scoring run at the end of the first quarter as the Seahawks led 13-6.

Isiah Knight also had an 11-yard touchdown catch from Chance Haywood and a two-point conversion run near the end of the first half as the Seahawks took the halftime lead.

Southside finished with 473 yards rushing compared to 367 for the Hurricanes (1-6, 0-2). Dylan Hardy added a 72-yard catch from Haywood. MicKyle Sastre led the Seahawks with 11 tackles while Tamari Moore had six tackles.

Southside goes to Northside Friday for the annual Anchor Bowl.

 

Greene Central 31, Washington 29

WASHINGTON, N.C. – It had all the makings for a dramatic Washington win exept for the final outcome.

Washington took the lead with 1:18 left only to see Greene Central benefit from a pass interference play that resulted in a 29-yard field goal by Samuel Avent after the clock had expired. The penalty gave the Rams one final chance to win it and they converted.

“You know, man, not one game is going to define us. Not one scoreboard is going to define us. And at the end of the day, everybody’s going to point at the last play, the last sequence,” Washington coach Matt Taylor said.

“We had them fourth and long twice. We stopped them once. And then we had the bad penalty. But it comes down to more than that. There were several plays throughout that game. We had the chance to go up two scores in the middle of the third quarter and we fumbled it on the two. We just didn’t make enough plays tonight. And, you know, hats off to them.”

Washington (3-4, 2-1 Eastern Plains Conference) put on a dramatic march down the field of its own that resulted in a go-ahead touchdown. Keondrick Melton punched in a touchdown from 6 yards out and Anderson Thomas ran in a two-point conversion to give Washington a 29-28 lead with 1:18 left. Greene Central (4-4, 1-3) helped the drive with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct call after Melton rushed for 14 yards.

The game was a back-and-forth contest where patience was the key. There were some chippy moments that kept the officials busy in the first half. Melton rumbled for his first touchdown and a 7-6 Washington lead with 5:08 left in the first quarter.

When the Rams took a 14-7 lead, Melton answered witha 49-yard scoring run that tied the game at 14-14 with 6:55 left in the third. The Pack blocked a punt on their next possession and Calek Smaw scored on a 2-yard run to give Washington a 21-14 lead.

Greene Central quarterback Josh Cetner threw a 45-yard touchdown to Christian Tavarez to cut the deficit to 21-20 but could not convert the conversion run. Cetner and Tavarez hooked up again for a 30-yard touchdown pass and a 28-21 lead with 4:25 left.

Washington’s loss along with North Pitt’s loss to Ayden-Grifton not only creates a log jam atop the EPC, it also re-emphasizes a key meeting between the Pam Pack and Panthers next week in Washington in a tight race for the league title.

“Hats off to our kids. And they played really hard. And it just sucks when you put so much into something. And these kids had so much faith in each other,” Taylor said.

“And to come up short like that, it’s really hard on a teenager who plays with high emotions. And that’s part of the message I gave them is, you know, if he goes out there and misses that field goal, it’s a totally different feeling in there. It’s a totally different attitude.”

 

East Carteret 35, Northside 27

BEAUFORT, N.C. — Both teams exploded on offense in the fourth quarter with the Panthers (5-3, 1-1 Coastal Plains Conference) nearly pulling out the win.

East Carteret (3-4, 2-0) led 20-7 going into the fourth quarter. Sincere Columbus scored on runs of 2, 1 and 29 yards,the last to draw within a touchdown with around a minute to go. However, Northside could not get closer.

East Carteret got two touchdowns between Columbus’ scores to keep the lead out of reach for the Panthers.

Columbus finished with 123 yards on 23 carries for Northside. Zanek Mccloud had 56 yards and a 10-yard scoring run to open things up for the Panthers in a 7-7 first quarter. He also had five tackles and an assist. 

Quarterback Chase Hewitt completed 8-of-12 passes for 141 yards. On defense, Zy’Marian O’Neal had seven tackles and two sacks.

 

Pungo Christian 52, Community Christian 26

BELHAVEN, N.C. – Pungo Christian improved to 6-1 with its fifth straight win.

The Raiders got three touchdowns in the second quarter to take a 30-20 lead. PCA got three more touchdowns in the second half to pull away.

It was the second victory for Pungo over Community Christian after the Raiders won in Wilson a week ago.

More Northside Panthers

Fall high school sports season extended one week due to Hurricane Helene

Northside’s Harding dominates, Panthers produce solid times at home meet

Offensive line of defense: It can be a thankless job but the work on lines big for area schools’ success

Top 3: Washington’s Makepeace among big-game performers

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