Class 4A Lower State Second Round Preview

Will the CSRA crash what has been the Region VI-4A tournament the last few years? The squads from Region V will have every chance to prove themselves this week. The second round of the playoffs will include one Region VI-4A rematch (North Myrtle Beach at Hartsville), meaning one of them is locked into a third-round appearance. However, Aiken and South Aiken have opportunities to stick it to their opponents from the coast this Friday. Add in North Augusta’s home game against Region VII squad Beaufort, and the western-most division in the Class 4A Lower State can rattle some cages. <strong>No. 3 Aiken (4-7) at No. 1 Myrtle Beach (8-1)</strong> The Green Hornets have some young talent that will be center stage very soon. But the fact remains that Aiken’s four wins this season have come against teams with a combined 11 victories. Simply, they haven’t faced anyone as good as Myrtle Beach. What’s more, the Seahawks’ defense is starting to peak. The starters - led by defensive linemen <strong>Dalton Epps</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id="153241" first="Tre" last="Phillips"] - have allowed opponents an average of just 7.6 points per game in the last six outings. <strong>No. 2 Beaufort (9-2) at No. 2 North Augusta (6-5)</strong> North Augusta running back <strong>DJ Curry</strong> and quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="91224" first="Austin" last="Harrell"] (pictured) have combined for 11 rushing touchdowns in the last three games - all wins, including the playoff opener over Bluffton. But in Beaufort, anything on the ground will be much tougher to come by against Beaufort. Eagles defensive linemen [player_tooltip player_id="89341" first="Eamon" last="Smalls"] and [player_tooltip player_id="200665" first="Alvin" last="Wilson"] have been integral parts of this team’s success all season. Last week against South Florence, for instance, Wilson had six tackles, two tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble and a quarterback pressure. <strong>No. 3 West Florence (8-2) at No. 1 South Aiken (8-1)</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="91198" first="Terry" last="McKithen"] has been on a tear for West Florence the last three games, as the Knights’ running back has gone off for 450 yards and five touchdowns down the regular-season stretch and first-round playoff win over James Island. Believe that he’s going to get his touches against South Aiken, too. McKithen is West’s best chance to keep Thoroughbreds super sophomore <strong>Terrence Smith</strong> (1,250 total yards, 13 total touchdowns) and freshman tailback <strong>Jevon Edwards</strong> (1,071 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns) off the field. <strong>No. 5 North Myrtle Beach (5-4) at No. 2 Hartsville (5-5)</strong> The Chiefs are riding high after their first-round road upset over May River. But they’ll have no problem looking back to September 17. That was when Hartsville came to Little River and put the defending Class 4A Lower State champs on notice. [player_tooltip player_id="202738" first="J’Shawn" last="Anderson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="208339" first="Carmello" last="McDaniel"] combined for 265 rushing yards and four touchdowns, freshman sensation <strong>Da’Marion Coe</strong> had an 89-yard kickoff return for a touchdowns and receiver <strong>Jonathan Flemister</strong> had a couple of back-breaking receptions. The Chiefs’ defense will have no choice but to play more like they did against May River to avoid a repeat.