Receiver-turned-unstoppable-running back leads Eagles to home win
By Justin Jarrett
LowcoSports.com
His team was up two touchdowns in the first quarter, and his newfound star running back had been in the end zone twice already when Beaufort coach Bryce Lybrand turned and asked with a wry smile, “Think I should give it to Kacy?”
Of course he should — and he did, feeding Kacy Fields 26 times to the tune of 271 yards and four more touchdowns, as the Eagles rolled to a 34-14 home win over Philip Simmons on Wednesday night to open Region 8-3A play.
Fields continued his unrelenting production since shifting from wide receiver to running back three weeks ago to add some juice to an offense that was slow to put up points early in the season, finding gaping holes created by a veteran offensive line and darting through them to run his three-week rushing total to 774 yards and 11 TDs on 83 carries.
The Iron Horses, like May River and Bluffton before them, had no response to the renewed run game, and when they loaded the box to try to stop Fields, sophomore quarterback Samari Bonds showed his progress as a passer, completing 7 of 9 passes for 101 yards and adding a rushing touchdown of his own.
Then there was Beaufort’s defense, doing more of what it has done all season — making things difficult for opposing offenses. Philip Simmons couldn’t find much running room against a tough Eagles front, and when the Iron Horses went to the air, they didn’t fare much better. The Eagles’ lead was a modest 13-0 at halftime, but the home team was very much in control until the Iron Horses broke through for the first score of the second half to make it a six-point game.
The worry was brief for the Beaufort faithful, as Fields found his way into the end zone a third time to restore the two-score advantage, then Bonds scampered for an 11-yard TD before Fields put on the finishing touches with a 44-yard touchdown trot to make it 34-7 and send Beaufort’s starters to the bench for the rest of the fourth quarter.
It was another thoroughly impressive performance against one of the top contenders in the Eagles’ new region, and Fields and Beaufort (4-1, 1-0) will try to keep the momentum rolling and run their winning streak to five games when they travel to Battery Creek on Saturday.
Justin Jarrett is the sports editor of The Island News and the founder of LowcoSports.com. He was the sports editor of the Island Packet and the Beaufort Gazette for 6½ years. He has a passion for sports and community journalism and a questionable sense of humor.
