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<p><strong>SIMPSONVILLE |</strong> On a cold Thursday night at Chandler Stadium, it wasn't the prettiest of games as Class 5A No. 10-ranked Hillcrest hosted Easley on homecoming. After falling at J.L. Mann 31-0 the previous week though, an "ugly" 28-3 win suited the Rams just fine.</p>
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<p>Hillcrest (5-1 overall, 2-1 Region I-5A) couldn't generate much in the passing game, but it really didn't have to. A beat up offensive line created holes for whoever carried the ball as the Rams piled up 365 yards on the ground. That's the program's highest rushing total since running for 366 against Riverside in 2015. After the game, Hillcrest head coach Bennett Swygert presented offensive line coach Amos Lamb with the game ball.</p>
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<p>"I don't think I've ever been in a position where five of our top seven offensive linemen were out. We were literally playing with JV guys and guys that have only had mop up duty," Swygert said. "To see them come together and play collectively was beautiful. It wasn't perfect, but man, it's team football and that's what we want to see."</p>
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<p>After a punt and an interception on their first two drives, the Rams got on the board on their third possession when <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1013066' first='Brayden' last='Johnson']</strong> scored on a six-yard run.</p>
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<p>Easley (1-5, 0-3) answered with its lone score on its ensuing possession. Quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1025811' first='Jay' last='Stoker']</strong> completed his first four passes of the drive, including a 35-yard throw to <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1327713' first='Matthew' last='Hillstock']</strong> to the Hillcrest 10-yard line. Stoker's lone incompletion of the drive came on third down and the Green Wave had to settle for an <strong>Evan Massey</strong> 25-yard field goal.</p>
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<p>Out of seven first-half possessions for Easley, that was the only one that didn't end on a punt as Hillcrest's defense forced five three-and-outs in the first half. The Rams had three more three-and-outs on defense in the second half. Hillcrest held Easley to its lowest scoring output this season and allowed 178 yards of total offense, including 45 rushing.</p>
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<p>"That was a very big loss last week, but we just dealt with the adversity. I think it helped us respond tonight because sometimes you come in with a chip on your shoulder," said Hillcrest defensive end <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1254134' first='DJ' last='Henderson']</strong> (pictured). "We needed to knock that chip off tonight and just play Hillcrest football."</p>
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<p>Hillcrest extended its first half lead to 21-3 thanks to touchdown runs by quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='809746' first='Kalab' last='Sutton']</strong> of five and two yards, respectively, on back-to-back possessions. Sutton completed only one pass Thursday, but it was a 45-yard bomb to <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='347516' first='Weston' last='Willis']</strong> to set up his second touchdown run.</p>
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<p>Sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1604046' first='Jackson' last='Free']</strong> came on in relief of Sutton late in the first half and quarterbacked the rest of the way.</p>
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<p>"Kalab's okay. He's been battling some injuries, but he will be fine," Swygert said. "It's always nice when that emergency button hits to have a kid like Jackson to put in. He's thrown six or seven touchdowns this season. It's a luxury."</p>
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<p>Free didn't throw a touchdown Thursday, but he did run for one. His two-yard keeper on the second play of the fourth quarter accounted for the lone score of the second half.</p>
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<p>"Just learning from Kalab all year has been great. I'm just trying to follow his lead," Free said. "A lot of people stepped up on our offensive line tonight and did an awesome job."</p>
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<p>Sutton led the Rams with 101 yards rushing on 10 carries. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1359171' first='Frank' last='Starks']</strong> carried 14 times for 79 yards, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1012706' first='Josh' last='Smith']</strong> had 61 yards on eight carries, <strong>Quayshad Harris</strong> ran six times for 47 yards, Johnson had 44 yards on five carries, and Free finished with 25 yards on four attempts.</p>
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<p>"I'm telling you, our running backs run the ball really hard," Swygert said. "The only problem I have with those guys is that I have four of them and only one ball."</p>
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<p>Stoker completed 12-of-28 passes for 123 yards before he limped off in the fourth quarter. He sustained a number of hits throughout the night. <strong>Aaron Tolbert</strong> ran 16 times for 60 yards and caught five passes for 29 yards also for Easley. Hillstock had 61 yards receiving on four catches.</p>
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SIMPSONVILLE | On a cold Thursday night at Chandler Stadium, it wasn't the prettiest of games as Class 5A No. 10-ranked Hillcrest hosted Easley on homecoming. After falling at J.L. Mann 31-0 the previous week though, an "ugly" 28-3 win suited the Rams just fine.
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