St. James tops Marlboro County for first playoff win in school history

The St. James football team’s bus ride home was relatively quiet Friday night.

However, it wasn’t the silence of a team that went on the road and lost a playoff game. Rather, it was that of a squad that had gone into Marlboro County and won 27-18 to advance to the second round of the Class AAA playoffs.

As for the silence? The Sharks’ celebration of the first postseason win in school history ended in the locker room as they were already getting focused for a second-round matchup with top-seeded Midland Valley next week.

“We celebrated a little after the game in the locker room,” said St. James quarterback Zach Werba, who connected with Trey Myers for a pair of touchdowns. “The bus is silent now. We’re focused on heading up to Midland Valley. That should be a shootout and great game. We’re really excited about that one.”

While the Sharks were taking a business-like approach following the game, it indeed was a historic win for the program and school.

“It helps build confidence,” St. James coach Robby Brown said. “After watching film on them, we knew we had a chance. We had a goal not to turn the ball over and we knew if we played our type of game we’d have a chance. It helps them build confidence. They believed. They’ve believed all year.”

Jamarius Faulkner scored from six yards out to give the Sharks a 6-0 lead on their first possession. After the Bulldogs tied it up on the following series, Werba connected with Myers from nine yards out to put St. James up 13-6. Not long after, the Sharks extended their lead to 20-6 when Tyler Hunt ran back an interception 11 yards for a score.

“We got that interception for a touchdown and kind of rolled from there,” Brown said.

After Marlboro County scored again to cut the lead to 20-12, Werba found Myers again for a 35-yard score to take a 27-12 lead into halftime. While St. James failed to score in the second half, the lead was enough to hold off the Bulldogs, who mustered just six points after halftime.

“Ball control,” Brown said of the key to winning the game. “Offensively we just wanted to get first downs. We didn’t want to give them a lot of possessions. One play – just like that – they can get a long pass for touchdown. With their skills guys they have so much speed. We just wanted to control the ball on offense and have no turnovers.”

Werba lauded his teammates for their physical play up front.

“Our offensive line and defensive line came up huge,” he said. “They definitely won the trenches. I told them before the game that if we won the trenches we’d win the game. And our defense came up huge in the end and we won the game.”

Cole Gallagher and Alijah Pursley had interceptions late in the game to quell Marlboro County drives.

“We’re not a high-scoring, high-octane offense. We’re a different team than the Marlboro Counties and Myrtle Beaches of the world,” Brown said. “We had to play our game and that’s exactly what we did. We were fortunate to get a few turnovers and control the ball and that gave us a chance.”

After all, it was more than just a win. On top of that, it came in a tough environment.

“It was a big win for us. Anytime you go into Marlboro County – a tough place to play and on the road – (it’s big),” Brown said. “They’re a well-coached team and they’re very athletic. Our kids played well on special teams and offensively and defensively. They put together a whole game and that’s what you want to do in the playoffs. They played good. We were hitting on all cylinders out of the gates.”

As for next week, Brown and Co. will take their usual approach as they prepare for a trip to Midland Valley.

“We’ll do the same thing we do every week,” Brown said. “Like I told them before this game, it’s just another game. We’re taking it one week at a time.”

Werba said the Sharks had a good contingent of fans who traveled to watch the game.

“It was huge. Everyone was stoked about it,” he said of the win. “It was a great atmosphere. Everybody came out. It was awesome.”

He expects the fan fare to only grow from here.

“It’s going to be crazy,” he said of returning to school. “We had a good amount of students come out tonight and it should be even better when we get back.”

This story was originally published November 14, 2015 at 12:10 AM with the headline "St. James tops Marlboro County for first playoff win in school history."