Hot start propels Lexington into second round
Lexington made sure its first home playoff game in four years wasn’t its last this season.
Slade Carroll ran for three touchdowns and the Wildcats scored 35 first-half points on their way to a 45-14 win over Fort Mill on Friday in the first round of the Class 4A, Division II playoffs.
Lexington will host Blythewood in the second round next week. The Wildcats defeated Blythewood 21-20 on Sept. 4.
Carroll, Lexington’s senior running back, ran for 176 yards and went over 4,000 yards for his career in the game. He ran for 153 yards in the first half as Lexington scored 28 consecutive points, capped off by Matthew Boring’s 20-yard interception return, to lead 35-7.
Wildcats quarterback Brandon Blake was 12-for-15 for 120 yards and a touchdown in the first half. Blake didn’t play in the second half and Carroll was in a few series before the starters were pulled for the rest of the game.
TURNING POINT
With score tied at 7 in the first quarter, Carroll scored on a 20-yard run to give Lexington a 14-7 lead. From there, the Wildcats’ defense kept the Yellow Jackets at bay until late in the fourth quarter.
KEY PERFORMERS
Slade Carroll: Carried ball 22 times for 176 yards and three touchdowns.
Brett Ferguson: Fort Mill back led team with 96 yards rushing.
THEY SAID IT
“A home playoff game is great for our kids, our staff and the Lexington community. It was great to get a home playoff game. but it was even better to win it. We’ve got a long way to go, but our ultimate goal is still in front of us and we’ve got to work hard to get it.” – Lexington coach Josh Stepp
“We stepped it up in practice Tuesday through Thursday, and that led to us playing great in the first half. We knew we had to come out strong and execute and everything would go our way.” – Lexington running back Slade Carroll
KEY NUMBERS
501: Total yards by Lexington.
11: Consecutive wins by the Wildcats since a season-opening loss to Westside.
HOW THEY SCORED
1st Quarter
L – Carroll 28 run (Kinsley kick), 7:35
FM – Ferguson 9 pass from Wells (Sheets kick), 5:31
L – Carroll 20 run (Kinsley kick), 2:23
2nd Quarter
L – Carroll 20 run (Kinsley kick), 9:34
L – Wells 26 pass from Blake (Kinsley kick), 5:45
L – Boring 20 interception return (Kinsley kick), 1:56
3rd Quarter
L – Christian Tinsley 34 FG, 7:38
4th Quarter
L – McGee 17 run (Kinsley kick), 11:24
FM – Jarosz 1 pass from Wells (Sheets kick), 7:21
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing: FM: Hughes 8-84, Ferguson 12-96, Wells 6-8, Helms 3-29. L: Carroll 22-176, Green 7-49, Davis 6-34, Baker 3-13.
Passing: FM: Wells 5-10-1 43, Helms 3-8-0 56. L: Blake 12-15-0 120, Baker 6-9-0 88
Receiving: FM: Helms 2-16, Hughes 2-39, Ferguson 1-9, Jarosz 2-29. L: Graves 3-37, Hopper 3-31, Wells 3-34, Rumph 3-51
This story was originally published November 20, 2015 at 11:41 PM.