They call soccer — known everywhere else in the world as football — the beautiful game. This was not that, but the result was beautiful for Battery Creek.
At the tail end of an ugly game marked by sluggish offenses and yellow flags, Battery Creek’s Jacove Anderson broke away for an 89-yard touchdown run to lift the Dolphins to a 6-0 win at Ridgeland Hardeeville — their third consecutive victory.
Anderson finished with 151 yards on 17 carries on a night when offense was otherwise at a premium.
The Jaguars blocked three punts but couldn’t convert any of them into points — including one that set them up with first-and-goal at the 3 — and the last one was the unlikely catalyst for Anderson’s game-winning run. It looked as if RHHS would be set up for a winning score of its own after blocking a Dolphins’ punt deep in Creek territory, but the Jags gained possession of the ball before fumbling, and the Dolphins recovered on their own 11 with 1:44 left.
On the next play, Anderson bounced around the right end and sprinted up the Jaguars’ sideline for the night’s only score that wasn’t nullified by a flag.
Battery Creek had an interception return for a touchdown called back, and the Jags had quarterback Antonio Chaneyfield’s long touchdown run wiped out by a late flag.
The Dolphins’ continued their strong play on defense with Shamarr Hamilton leading the way with eight tackles (one for loss), three sacks, and two QB pressures. Ellis Williams added four pass breakups, an interception and a forced fumble for Battery Creek.
The Dolphins (3-3, 2-1) wrapped up at least the No. 3 seed in the Class 3A playoffs and will host defending region champion May River on Friday.
Battery Creek’s Elijah Dean (6) combines with a teammate to bring down the Ridgeland-Hardeeville ball carrier Friday in Ridgeland. The Dolphins won 6-0 for their third straight victory. Photo by Justin Jarrett / LowcoSports.com.
