Class A Upper State Second Round Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Round two of the Class A Upper State bracket features five former state champions among the eight remaining schools.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One matchup features two teams in Wagener-Salley and Blackville-Hilda facing each other for the second time this season. There's also a first-ever meeting between St. Joseph's and top-ranked Lewisville.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The remaining two contests involve teams in defending champion Christ Church and McBee and Southside Christian versus Calhoun County who've faced each other in the postseason in the recent past.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's a look at Friday's games:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NO. 2 MCBEE (7-4) AT NO. 1 CHRIST CHURCH (9-2)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defending Class A champion Cavaliers have won seven straight games after early season losses to Gray Collegiate and Riverside. Shrine Bowl running back and Northwestern commit <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='267466' first='Dashun' last='Reeder']</strong> rushed for 148 yards and three touchdowns in the 49-0 win over Ridge Spring-Monetta. Quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1013068' first='Tucker' last='Hendrix']</strong> threw for 170 yards and three touchdowns. For the season, he's thrown for 1,879 yards and 25 touchdowns. His main target is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1012637' first='Jackson' last='Repp']</strong> with over 800 yards and 15 touchdowns. The defense has posted back-to-back shutouts and four overall this season. Senior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='997188' first='Jake' last='Good'] has a team-high 81 tackles. Defensive lineman <strong>Lincoln Weldie </strong>and linebacker <strong>Cooper Hronchek</strong> each have five sacks and defensive back <strong>Matthew Covington</strong> has four interception.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers rebounded from a season-ending 58-7 loss to top-ranked Lewisville with a 49-12 win over Dixie. The offense is run-oriented with running back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1254038' first='Devarius' last='Ponds']</strong> leading the team in rushing and wide receiver <strong>Darrell Harper </strong>has a team-high 10 rushing touchdowns. On defense, linebacker <strong>Evan Talbert </strong>has a team-high 63 tackles and three sacks. Linebacker <strong>Jakari Holloman</strong> has 45 tackles and a sack and <strong>Jasson Brockington</strong> has 33 tackles and three sacks on the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NO. 3 WAGENER-SALLEY (7-3) NO. 2 BLACKVILLE-HILDA (9-2)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A rematch from Week Six won by the Hawks 34-8. They are coming off a 47-20 win over McCormick in which <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='605527' first='Jaquel' last='Holman']</strong> rushed for 140 yards and three touchdowns and had a 38-yard scoring reception.  For the season, he has 1,589 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns. Backfield mate <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='315319' first='Tamari' last='Daniels']</strong> had 101 rushing yards and a touchdown. On defense, <strong>Kedrick Smith</strong> had 7.5 tackles and has 8t.5 tackles on the season and defensive back <strong>Darius Jenkins</strong> had seven tackles and has 33.5 tackles on the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The War Eagles rely on a ground game spearheaded by an offensive line led by Touchstone Energy Cooperatives Bowl selection <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='997142' first='Brandon' last='Pontoon']</strong>. <strong>Kentrall Brown</strong> and <strong>Aiden Stroman</strong> will look to capitalize on the upfront blocking for yardage and points. The defense allowed just 183 total yards and tied a season-low in points allowed in the 46-6 victory over C.A. Johnson.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NO. 2 SOUTHSIDE CHRISTIAN (7-3) AT NO. 1 CALHOUN COUNTY (10-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Saints have won eight straight games. Running back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='710430' first='Ahmir' last='Smith'] </strong>celebrated his addition to the Shrine Bowl team led by his head coach Wayne Farmer with three touchdowns in the 62-0 win over Whitmire. <strong>Marquez Davenport</strong> rushed for two scores and the defense forced three turnovers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After an 0-2 start, the Sabres have won seven of their last eight games. In the 49-6 win over Denmark-Olar, receiver <strong>Josh Hennum </strong>rushed for close to 100 yards and a touchdown. The two-quarterback system with <strong>Paul Cobin</strong> and <strong>Carson Bolemon</strong> has resulted in a combined 2,000 total yards. As a team, Southside Christian are holding opponents to 9.8 points per game since the winless start. A big reason in the play upfront with <strong>Silas Robertson</strong>, and defensive linemen <strong><u>[player_tooltip player_id='396487' first='Micah' last='McGowan']</u> </strong>and <strong>Jeremiah Jackson</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NO. 3 ST. JOSEPH'S (9-2) AT NO. 1 LEWISVILLE (10-1) &nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is the first-ever meeting between the two schools. Running back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1013066' first='Brayden' last='Johnson']</strong> has carried the Knights' offense and is coming off a 180-yard, two-touchdown performance in the 49-6 win over Denmark-Olar. He's joined in the backfield by <strong>Lucas Salgado</strong>, who scored three touchdowns (two rushing and a kick return) in the regular-season finale against McCormick.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Lions have posted seven shutout victories this season, including last week's 52-0 win over Calhoun Falls Charter, and have allowed a total of 37 points in 10 games played. Linebacker <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1142605' first='Joaquan' last='Howze']</strong> leads the team with 100 tackles, followed by linebacker <strong>Daquan Evans</strong> with 73 tackles. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1158047' first='Elisha' last='Baker']</strong> has a team-high nine sacks and <strong>Jakarri Strong</strong> is among the state leaders in interceptions with nine. On offense, quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='809751' first='Ian' last='Grissom']</strong> is one of the state's most prolific passers with 2,331 yards and 31 touchdowns. He has versatile weapons in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='589011' first='Dion' last='Brown']</strong> (pictured), <strong>De'Adrian Robinson</strong> and <strong>Jacorreun Howze</strong>. In the backfield, <strong>Damion Fee</strong> has rushed for close to 700 yards and 11 TDs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->