Shealey, Blue Eagles Pull Away To Beat Hillcrest

CLOVER | Clover head coach Perry Woolbright told us before the game that seven guys were playing their first snaps on varsity last week in the season opening loss to Chambers.    With a two-point lead in the fourth quarter, those young guys and the Blue Eagles found a way to close it out in the fourth quarter as they defeated Hillcrest, 30-21 on Friday night.   “This lets them see what can happen when they do the right thing, when they play hard for four quarters. We didn't play perfect. Like I told them after the game, we're not perfect people. We don't live perfect lives but we play, and play and play and battle. As long as we keep doing that (we'll be fine), but it doesn't get any easier. We got Palisades next week, York the following week and then we start region play but these types of wins will get us ready for those,” Woolbright said.   [player_tooltip player_id='1776870' first='Brody' last='Woolbright'] got the start at quarterback for the Blue Eagles initially. More on that in a moment. He picked up a crucial fourth down conversion to [player_tooltip player_id='1823061' first='Justin' last='Haywood'], setting up a [player_tooltip player_id='1827441' first='Jeremiah' last='Farmer'] touchdown run to close the scoring.   The first few drives of the game were a stalemate. Hillcrest's [player_tooltip player_id='1615047' first='Kyle' last='Jackson'] nearly had an interception on Clover's opening series. Rams quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1404968' first='Jackson' last='Hill'] and wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='1820613' first='JK' last='Stroud'] connected on a 13-yard gain on their first series before the drive ended one play later as Clover's Caleb Starr picked off Hill.   Clover got into Hillcrest territory for the first time in the evening around the 8-minute mark, but it was all for not as the field goal was no good.   After the Blue Eagles' third drive of the game, Woolbright made a switch to [player_tooltip player_id='1407416' first='Aaron' last='Shealey'] (pictured above), which gave them a spark.    “(I want to) get the ball to the playmakers and let them do something with the ball. Let them do what they do best – make plays,” Shealey said.   [player_tooltip player_id='1824427' first='Grady' last='Stone'] picked up a 17-yard gain into Rams territory and then two plays later, Shealey connected with Rhyan Watson for a 34-yard touchdown catch to draw first blood with 4:21 to play in the first quarter.   The rest of the quarter was a stalemate as the defenses dominated with [player_tooltip player_id='1404968' first='Jackson' last='Hill'] getting a tackle for loss and [player_tooltip player_id='1734584' first='Brandon' last='Smith'] nearly picking off Hill. [player_tooltip player_id='1816484' first='Tristan' last='Bigham'] connected on a field goal with 10:24 to play before the half as Clover took a 10-0 lead.   Momentum started to shift to the visitors from the Upstate as Hill and Stroud connected on a 87-yard touchdown backed up in their own territory, to cut into the lead at 10-7 with 6:02 to play in the first quarter. Then a bad snap on the punt following a Clover 3-and-out was recovered by the Rams. [player_tooltip player_id='1734605' first='Josh' last='Smith'] scored on a 4-yard run, giving Hillcrest the lead at 14-10 with 4:25 to play before the half.   The third quarter was much like the first half – a slugfest. But Clover would break through late in the third quarter as Shealey connected with [player_tooltip player_id='1823061' first='Justin' last='Haywood'] on a 45-yard screen pass, leaving everyone in the dust to give them a 17-14 lead with 4:25 to play in the quarter. He was a frequent target, and it's something they work on during the week.   “Sometimes, we stay after practice and try to get it perfect because nothing is going to be perfect. We try to get it as best we can,” Shealey told Prep Redzone SC after the game.    Luke McCurry was an impact player throughout the evening for Hillcrest. he has smooth hands and can go up and make catches. He made a big catch to set up a Smith 2-yard run to give them a 21-17 lead heading into the fourth quarter.   Woolbright connected with [player_tooltip player_id='1827403' first='Jake' last='Nicely'] for a 56-yard gain in the fourth quarter, setting up a JayTwon Croom 4-yard run to give the Blue Eagles the lead at 23-21 with 10:39 to play in the contest. The extra point was blocked.   Clover Team Notes   Liam Hawkins had the game sealing interception with 1:50 left in the contest.    [player_tooltip player_id='1743683' first='Carson' last='Pinti'], [player_tooltip player_id='1820495' first='Anthony' last='Ramirez'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1827391' first='Omari' last='Stroud'] were involved in tackles all throughout the evening with their ability to read plays quickly.   Woolbright on defense: “Last week, we just had a couple plays where we fitted wrong and things like that. We fitted right tonight and we told them all week, if we don't give up big plays, they'd struggle driving the ball on us and stuff like that. (We) gave up one big play in the first half but in the second half, our guys battled. We're a physical team. We train to be physical and our defense, especially our front, really did a great job getting after them up there.”   LaTrell Ellison made some critical catches at receiver, one near the sideline in the second half, and then a 47-yard gain in the first quarter.   Hillcrest Team Notes   Landon Harris did a nice job against a screen on defense and brought a big hit in the first quarter.   [player_tooltip player_id='1680986' first='Chris' last='Briggs'] was a name we heard for the Rams defense throughout the evening – he made a hard hit on a screen in the second quarter. EJ Harper made a pass breakup in the first quarter.   On Deck   Clover travels to Palisades out of Charlotte, while Hillcrest hosts Greer.

CLOVER | Clover head coach Perry Woolbright told us before the game that seven guys were playing their first snaps on varsity last week in the season opening loss to Chambers.