Published Tuesday, November 15, 2011 5:47 PM
Updated Tuesday, November 15, 2011 5:49 PM

Photo by: Doug Rogers/Special to the Post and Courier

Green Wave knocks Patriots out of the playoffs

Sophomore running back Devon Anderson led Summerville (8-4) to a 28-27 victory over Fort Dorchester (7-5) Friday in the opening round of the Division 1-AAAA playoffs. The Patriots’ season is over while the Green Wave advances to face Byrnes on the road.

“We are going to have to play better defense than we did tonight to have a chance,” Summerville coach John McKissick said. “We hustled tonight, but we couldn’t stop their running backs. However, we got 28 and they got 27 so that’s what counts. It’s hard to beat a good team twice in one season.”

The Patriots pulled within a point of Summerville on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Ethan Long to Rodney Gibbs with 1:52 remaining in the game. However, the holder on the post-touchdown play pulled the ball up and swept right to try to reach the end zone. Summerville lineman Trey Privette chased him down to make the tackle well short of the goal line to help secure the win.

“It wasn’t a called play,” Fort Dorchester coach Steve LaPrad said. “We fumbled the snap.”

Privette began this season as a defensive lineman, but was moved to the other side of the ball mid-season in hopes that he could help strengthen a struggling Wave offense. However, the Wave needed him on special teams due to an injury so he pulled double duty Friday and his defensive experience came in handy.

“I thought they kicked it so I jumped up, but then I saw him pull out with the ball so I ran out,” Privette said. “Someone else grabbed him and that gave me time to get there and finish him.”

The first half was tight until Summerville caught a break on a kickoff after Anderson scored on a 45-yard run. The Fort Dorchester kick returner juggled the kickoff and two Summerville defenders were there before he could secure it. Lacy Pickett recovered the fumble at the Fort 6 and four plays later Jarrod Tucker dove into the end zone for a 21-7 Summerville lead.

Fort Dorchester started to move the ball on its ensuing possession, but then defensive back Ryan Fowler stripped a ball away from a Fort running back and dashed 44 yards to the end zone for a 21-point Wave lead.

The Patriots marched 80 yards on their ensuing position and scored on an 11-yard pass from Long to Gibbs to trail 28-14 at the half.

Summerville failed to get on the board in the final two quarters while the Patriots capped a 74-yard drive with a 1-yard TD run by Devron Glenn and an 87-yard drive with Gibbs’ second TD catch of the night to pull within a point.

Anderson rushed for 201 yards and a TD for Summerville before being injured and missing the final 10 minutes of the game. He carried more than 20 times and also had a TD called back on a penalty. He is expected to play in this week’s game.

Daitwan Commodore and Charles Loftland both rushed for approximately 95 yards for the Fort. Long threw for nearly 165 yards.

The win is Summerville’s 13th straight victory over Fort Dorchester. The Wave now leads the series 19-2.

Summerville        7    21    0    0—28

Fort Dorchester    7    7    7    6—27

S – Chris McKinnon 2 run (Parker Cleveland kick)

FD Daitwan Commodore 18 run (Ryan Grainger kick)

S – Devon Anderson 45 run (Cleveland kick)

S – Jarred Tucker 1 run (Cleveland kick)

S – Ryan Fowler 44 fumble return (Cleveland kick)

FD – Rodney Gibbs 11 pass from Ethan Long (Grainger kick)

FD – Devron Glenn 1 run (Grainger kick)

FD – Gibbs 12 pass from Long (run failed)

Contact Roger Lee @ 873-9424 ext. 213 or rlee@journalscene.com