What We Saw: Clover 31, Blythewood 28

CLOVER | Clover overcame a first half defensive slugfest and a late rally from Blythewood in the fourth quarter to win 31-28 and advance to the second round on the road against JL Mann next Friday night.   “It's about winning and getting to the next one. It doesn't matter if it's by one or by 50 as long as you're still playing. We let up a little bit there at the end. We made some mistakes we hadn't been doing all game. We played really a great game up until that point. We did what we wanted to do and what we needed to and just kind of let off the gas and let them back in the ball game. They've got a good team and we knew that could happen. We've just got to make sure we finish off games because it's going to get tougher each week,” Clover head coach Perry Woolbright said.   Blythewood came out swinging in the first quarter on defense past midfield as Chandler Boulware and Jaylen Reeves made tackles for loss on back-to-back plays. On third-and-13, [player_tooltip player_id='1407416' first='Aaron' last='Shealey'] connected with Dane Craig (pictured above) for a 50-yard touchdown to give Clover the first score of the night with 8:38 to play in the first quarter.   [player_tooltip player_id='473013' first='Carter' last='Coleman'] was heavily involved on the Bengals' first drive, including a 16-yard run on a jet sweep before he caught a pass and ran 60 yards to the house. The extra point was blocked as Clover maintained a 7-6 lead with 7:53 to play in the first quarter.   Craig made a 31-yard catch with Clover backed up in their endzone midway through the second quarter, but the Blue Eagles fumbled on the next play and it was recovered by [player_tooltip player_id='1157753' first='Kemuel' last='Little'].    It looked like the Bengals were in prime position to get it in the end zone. But the Blue Eagles' defense stood tall as Jaylon Holmes stoned the run on 4th and goal. Blythewood spent the majority of the second quarter on Clover's side of the field, but when it mattered, they made stops.    “They (the defense) played great. We kind of knew all night that as long as we didn't give up the big play that we had a good chance. We didn't feel like they could drive the ball on us. Not many teams can drive the ball on us and really, their touchdowns were big plays. They never drove the ball so our defense did a great job and made a big stand that kept us in the game and (in) the playoffs, those are momentum plays,”    Justin Haywood made a leaping catch for Clover in the late stages of the half, leading to a Haven Maddox 21-yard field goal as the Blue Eagles took a 10-6 lead to the locker room.   SECOND HALF MOMENTUM SWINGS   TJ McCluney made a big catch on a corner route before [player_tooltip player_id='1603816' first='Grady' last='Stone'] scored from 3 yards out, giving Clover a 17-6 lead with 6:26 left in the third quarter. Things went from bad to worse for Blythewood on the ensuing series as they fumbled the punt.    It did not take long for the Blue Eagles to cash in as Stone scored again from five yards out with 4:58 to play in the period as Perry Woolbright's squad started to create some distance with a 24-6 lead.   But Blythewood wouldn't go away quietly in the fourth quarter. The Bengals blocked a Maddox field goal and returned it deep into Clover territory. And it took one play as [player_tooltip player_id='1418100' first='John' last='Henry Collins'] connected with Ben Hendrix from 24 yards out with 11:36 to play in the contest to bring Blythewood within 11 at 24-13.   Clover responded well with a huge 46-yard reception from Craig before [player_tooltip player_id='1012627' first='Landon' last='Stone'] scored from 29 yards out as the Blue Eagles took a 31-13 lead with 9:01 to play in the contest. Every time they needed a big play, especially on third down, they got it with the help of Craig.   “He's a swiss army knife. He does a little bit of everything for us. He's a smart kid, runs great routes. He's there wherever we need him to be and he did a great job tonight. He made some big catches for us. They've got a great defensive front and the way they load the box, we had to get some things over the top and we were able to do that,” Woolbright on Craig   Game over, right? Not exactly.    Nick Bonneau scored on a pick six with 5:32 to play to make it 31-20. Collins connected with Ben Hendrix on a 46-yard score and then the Bengals were able to get a two-point try to cut it to a three point game with 3:04 to play as that's as close the Bengals would get. Stone was able to run it out as the Blue Eagles were able to milk the rest of the clock.   Other Clover standouts   [player_tooltip player_id='402485' first='Cameron' last='James'] | TE – James made several nice catches throughout the evening and was a name we kept hearing when the Blue Eagles went to the quick passing game.   TJ McCluney | WR – McCluney caught the ball and ran for a first down on a fake punt in the third quarter   [player_tooltip player_id='1696778' first='Najeh' last='Potts'] | LB – Potts had an interception with 7:41 remaining in the fourth quarter.   Sam Lee | LB – Lee made a huge hit near the goal line in the second quarter.   Other Blythewood standouts   [player_tooltip player_id='1012579' first='Sterling' last='Sanders'] | DL – Sanders was disruptive on a second down scramble in the second quarter.   Silah Holmes | LB – Holmes made an excellent recognition of a screen for a Blythewood tackle for loss.

CLOVER | Clover overcame a first half defensive slugfest and a late rally from Blythewood in the fourth quarter to win 31-28 and advance to the second round on the road against JL Mann next Friday night.