Cheraw claims Region 8-2A title

CHERAW — With the Region 8-2A championship on the line Friday night, Dillon’s football squad had a simple game plan — stop Cheraw’s Travis Small and Montrell Evans.

But the Wildcats had no answer for Kenyatta Gary. The senior North-South game selection scored twice on offense and was all over the field on defense as Cheraw earned its fifth consecutive region title with a 24-6 win at Meiklejohn Stadium.

The Braves (7-3 overall, 5-0 in conference) will host Waccamaw in the opening round of the Class 2A playoffs next Friday night at 7:30 p.m.

All night, Dillon stacked the line with eight, and sometimes nine, players to contain the Braves’ powerful running attack. For the most part, it worked. Small was held to just 55 yards on 24 carries, and Evans rushed for 64 yards and a score.

The Wildcats’ strategy cost them a touchdown early in the contest. From the Dillon 44-yard line, quarterback Gray Stafford faked a handoff to Evans, then lofted a pass to a wide-open Gary for a 7-0 lead with 9:11 left in the first.

Gary finished with two receptions for 56 yards and two TDs. Stafford finished 5-for-6 passing for 87 yards and two scores.

“We watched film on Dillon’s defense all week,” Gary said. “We just went out, played football, and I was open twice for touchdowns.”

“To be honest, we’ve under-utilized Kenyatta this season,” said Cheraw coach Johnny White, whose Braves have won 27 straight region games. “He’s a big part of our defense, but we wanted to utilize him more on offense tonight.”

Defensively, Dillon (7-3, 4-1) had no answer for Gary and the Braves defense. Travis Murphy and the Wildcats found nothing but trouble offensively, committing three turnovers that led to 10 points for Cheraw.

Gary led the Braves with 17 tackles and two sacks. Evans had a 52-yard return of a Murphy interception that led to a 37-yard Ben Hutson field goal with 1.5 seconds left in the first half.

“Our defense was excellent. We played better than everyone thought we would (against Dillon),” Gary said. “We wanted to prove to everybody that we were still on it, and we’re still the defending (Class 2A) champions.”

Murphy went 11-for-19 for 111 yards, an interception and two fumbles. Roderick Jackson rushed for 129 yards on 17 carries with a TD to lead the Wildcats.

“I thought we played well, but we committed too many mistakes,” said Dillon coach Jackie Hayes, who is now 2-5 against White. “We’ll regroup and get ready for the playoffs.

“Cheraw’s a good football team. Hopefully we’ll see them again in the playoffs.”

As the No. 2 seed out of Region 8-2A, Dillon will open the Class 2A playoffs next Friday night when it hosts Hanahan. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m.