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Goose Creek beats Stratford

Goose Creek beats Stratford at Goose Creek Friday night.

GOOSE CREEK — In what could be termed a must-win game, Goose Creek knocked off crosstown rival Stratford, 21-10, for a Region 7-AAAA victory Friday night.

Goose Creek (3-3, 1-0) bounced back from a heartbreaking loss to Fort Dorchester last week to bolster its region title hopes.

Stratford (1-5, 1-1) could have taken control of the region race with a win, having already beaten another region contender, Berkeley.

"We knew that despite Stratford's record they would be coming in here with a chance to really take control in the region," Goose Creek head coach Chuck Reedy said. "We expected them to play hard and

they certainly did. It was an intense, physical football game. Both teams played really hard. It's a big win for us. I thought our young men showed tremendous poise in the second half."

Junior quarterback Donta Brown gained 87 yards on the ground and was 8-of-14 passing for 140 yards to pace the Gators. Goose Creek totaled 353 yards in offense, with 213 yards on the ground.

"Donta Brown is a threat throwing the football and we kind of thought Stratford would come in and take away the running game early, which is exactly what they did for about three quarters," said Reedy.

"Donta was able to hurt them some throwing the ball early and that kept us in the game until we could get some things going on the ground in the second half."

Stratford struck first in the game, needing only four plays, in less than two minutes, on its first possession. Quarterback Tyler McDonald broke off a 58-yard run on the first play and Francis Lloyd scored on a 2-yard run for a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. McDonald saw most of his action at receiver on the night, catching seven passes for 79 yards. Junior Chris Hanna was 14-of-26 passing for 134 yards.

Goose Creek answered that score with an eight-play, 79-yard drive, tying the game on a 32-yard TD pass from Brown to Kevin Glears with 3:50 left in the first quarter.

Brown again hurt the Knights through the air on the Gators' next possession.

After hitting Zantorris Wilson on a 42-yard pass, Brown and running back Ranoy Hines hooked up on a screen that covered 24 yards to the Stratford 3.

Hines capped the drive with a 1-yard run with 11:21 left in the second quarter for a 14-7 halftime lead.

The defenses stiffened after halftime until Stratford's Ryan Gaither nailed a 33-yard field goal with 1:47 left in the third, cutting the lead to 14-10.

Goose Creek's offensive line then took the game over. The Gators used nearly five minutes, covering 80 yards on 12 running plays, scoring on Brown's 6-yard run with 9:11 left in the contest.

The score effectively sealed the win.

"I am so proud of the way our offensive line kind of took control of the game and our backs ran very hard," said Reedy. "Stratford had the momentum and there was a whole quarter to play. Our offense just would not be denied. I can't speak for Stratford's coaches, but it appeared to me that we were able to wear their defense down a little."

Goose Creek totaled 120 yards on the ground in the final 14 minutes. William Alston rushed for 62 yards and Hines ran for 48 yards, most of those yards coming on the last two drives of the game.

The win was Goose Creek's second straight over its biggest rival after going 12 consecutive seasons without a win in the series.

Stratford's lone touchdown in the game was its first since a Week 3 win over Berkeley. The Knights had been shutout in back-to-back losses to Beaufort and Summerville.