What We Saw: Hartsville 54, South Florence 35

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>HARTSVILLE |</strong> One by one, Hartsville's seniors proved they had a message to send.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1012620' first='Web' last='Barnes']</strong> was blowing up ball carriers, making stops on kickoffs and even had a pair of touchdown runs out of the wildcat.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='272699' first='Da'Marion' last='Coe']</strong> was his normally high-impact self at at safety, returned an interception 86-yards for a touchdown and added a kickoff return for a score to the mix.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tailback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1012592' first='Hakeem' last='Watters']</strong> showed off his wheels on a 64-yard run and finished with 161 yards and two scores.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578854' first='EJ' last='Smith']</strong> found ways to keep the chains moving even when the passing attack wasn't working.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And on, and on, and on it went in the Red Foxes' 54-35 win against South Florence on Friday.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“This was a dominant win for Hartsville,” Barnes said after Hartsville won the Region V-4A crown. “It makes us want other work harder. I still don't think we've played our best game. I think that's going to motivate us to reach our full potential. I think we're the best team in the state. No question.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For most of Friday night, there, in fact, was little question of what Hartsville was capable of. After a back-and-forth first half that saw both teams trade touchdowns, the Red Foxes went up for good on Coe's 78-yard kickoff return. On that play, Watters actually fielded the kick, but quickly pitched it to his left, where Coe was waiting to turn on his own jets. He cut upfield, made a spin move near the sideline and outran everyone else the rest of the way.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It wasn't the only “Wow” moment in a game full of them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Less than 5 minutes later, Watters took an end around to the right of Smith and found his own high gear for the long touchdown run that gave Hartsville a two-touchdown advantage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South would answer to keep it close and mix in several highlight-reel worthy plays of its own, but every time, there were the Red Foxes with another answer.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final ones came in the fourth quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Barnes opened the period with his second scoring run. Then Watters added his second touchdown. Followed up in the closing minute with Coe's long interception return.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The icing on the cake was how the Red Foxes' kickoff coverage team, led by Barnes and Coe (pictured), prevented dangerous South Florence star <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='464881' first='Jayden' last='Sellers']</strong> from doing any real damage in the return game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yes, it was a pretty good night for Hartsville.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“It proved that we are who we say were are,” Watters said. “We had a great week and came in and executed it very well. We're coming for it all. We talked about how important [this game] was and how important this season was. We're just building on the momentum.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>OTHER HARTSVILLE STANDOUTS</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578873' first='Coleman' last='Radcliff']</strong> LB | Hartsville's 5-foot-10, 190-pound linebacker was all over the field Friday. After recording tackles on two of South Florence's first-two offensive plays, he was consistently in the backfield while the Bruins' offensive line was busy trying to contain <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='922400' first='Jackson' last='Chavis']</strong> - the Red Foxes' starting defensive end. Radcliff then made a nifty diving interception in the fourth quarter that all but sealed the victory.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578854' first='EJ' last='Smith']</strong> QB | The Red Foxes' signal caller finished the game seven-of-17 through the air for 53 yards and a touchdown. And while his passing numbers were hindered by some over throws and a few drops, his 26-yard strike to <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592487' first='Tristian' last='Spann']</strong> in the first quarter and several more deep throws prevented South from overloading the box.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592473' first='Kylif' last='Miller']</strong> RB | Hartsvile's other starting tailback finished the game with 11 carries for 74 yards.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>SOUTH FLORENCE STANDOUTS</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='272722' first='Zion' last='Gilbert']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='272717' first='Tre' last='Leonard']</strong> RBs | The pair of seniors had another high-quality game. Gilbert finished with 16 carries for 125 yards - all without playing the opening quarter - while Leonard had 19 carries for 116 yards. Each of them reached the end zone twice in the loss.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1574090' first='Lennix' last='Valarie']</strong> WR | The senior continued to impress by hauling in five passes for 80 yards. Four of the catches and 70 of the yards came in the first half.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='809742' first='Amare' last='Adams']</strong> DL | In a new twist, the Bruins' standout defensive end and Clemson commitment was moved to tackle in an effort to slow down Hartsville's inside rushing attack. The Red Foxes went more toward the edges, but Adams was consistently making plays downfield despite his starting spot. He also broke up a second-quarter pass and nearly intercepted it.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->