Playing for its playoff life, Loris punches ticket in big rivalry game

One week before the official beginning of the SCHSL playoffs, the Loris football team was already playing for its season, needing to beat Aynor to add its name to the bracket. The Lions (4-6, 2-3 Region 6-AAA) would ride a strong second half to a 49-27 beat down of their rival to punch a ticket to the playoffs.

“Our playoffs started today, because if we didn’t win our season would’ve been over,” said Loris coach Jamie Snider following his team’s victory. “I’ve never been happier for a group of kids than this group right here. It didn’t go our way early and we found a way to keep playing and fighting and win against a rival. It was a good night, it was a good night for us and we earned the right to play another week.”

All week at practice, Snider and his coaches made sure the team knew the challenge they were up against: beat your rival to make the playoffs, or end your season at home with a loss. The seniors made sure their teammates were ready to play on Friday.

“We were focused all week in practice on what we wanted to do tonight,” said defensive tackle Andrew Wilson. “We set our expectations early in the week that we were going to show out. We knew that this game was very important and that our defense would have to play tough. We are a hard-nosed defense, so we wanted to show that again tonight.”

On the field, Aynor and Loris played the first quarter to a standstill, with neither offense finding the end zone, though Aynor was able to impose its will in the running game. The second quarter saw both teams find success, with Aynor scoring through the air and on the ground and Loris finding the end zone on a passing play. The first half would end with Loris scrambling to put a drive together, but a lack of timeouts would spell its doom, and the Blue Jackets would lead 15-8 at the break.

“We set our goal on Monday and when we got in there at halftime, we had some guys upset because we’re losing,” Snider said. I told them ‘You don’t get credit for winning a half, so let’s get after it in the second half.’”

The second half was a different story, as the Loris defense came out hungry and the offense found success. Loris scored three touchdowns in the third quarter, a pair of rushes by Tyrek Williams and then a long scoring scamper by Waderek Hemingway, to take a 28-15 lead into the final frame.

Aynor would score two times to bookend the fourth quarter, but would allow three Loris touchdowns in between to fall into a deficit it could not overcome. In the fourth quarter, Loris scored on a kick return, a fumble recovery, and would have a defensive lineman, Wilson, score a touchdown on offense.

“There ain’t no doubt about it, we need all the big plays we can get, especially this time of year,” Snider said. “You need those plays to spark your team and get them fired up. We had a few of them, a couple of turnovers and a big kick return – those are great to get everyone excited and in the game.”

The victory gave Snider his 50th as the Loris coach.

Turning point

Going into halftime down a score, Loris responded in the second half by outscoring Aynor 41-12 in the final two quarters. The Lions put up 20 unanswered points in the third quarter and another 21 in the fourth to bury Aynor.

Key performers

Levon Stevenson: Playing a calm and collected game, Stevenson orchestrated the Loris offense to perfection against Aynor, with 141 passing yards and 44 on the ground. At times, he was flushed from the pocket and took what the defense gave him in scrambles.

Andrew Wilson: It isn’t every game where a defensive tackle scores a rushing touchdown, which Wilson did in the fourth quarter. He also led the defensive charge in the second half, helping to slow down a potent Aynor rushing attack.

Noah Seaver: Aynor’s bell cow running back carried the ball a whopping 35 times into the teeth of the Loris defense, compiling 182 yards on the night.

By the numbers

4

Loris rushed for four touchdowns against Aynor on just 25 carries, making the most of its ground game.

275

Aynor rushed the ball 55 times for 275 yards and two touchdowns, but it wasn’t nearly enough to overcome Loris and its big play ability.

2

Again this week, Loris had two touchdowns that were scored by a unit other than the offense, a fumble return and a kickoff return.

They said it

“The only extra pressure I had was that it’s my youngest daughter’s (Brynne’s) birthday and she told me not to lose a game on her birthday. .” – Loris coach Jamie Snider

“We’re gonna enjoy this one tonight, figure out who we’re playing next week, and get back after it on Monday for practice.” - Snider

“I loved it, a big man making an impact on offense and scoring a touchdown; who doesn’t love that?” – Andrew Wilson, the 6’1” 275 pound defensive tackle for Loris who rushed for a score against Aynor

This story was originally published October 28, 2017 at 12:13 AM with the headline "Playing for its playoff life, Loris punches ticket in big rivalry game."