ELIZABETHTOWN — East Bladen powered past Midway 49-35 on Friday night in SAC-7 high school football, earning a chance to seize one of the league’s automatic bids to the state 2-A playoffs in its regular-season finale.
Seniors Tim McLean and Javius Brooks, and sophomore Masion Brooks each ran for 100-plus yards as the Eagles grinded out 437 against the pass-minded Raiders.
East Bladen visits Clinton on Friday. The Dark Horses are 4-1 in the league, East Bladen is 3-2, both behind 5-0 St. Pauls. Two playoff berths go to the league, and others are likely via the wild cards available from the 64-team field that this year is not subdivided by size.
• Decisive: East Bladen trailed 14-7 late in the first quarter but got stops defensively and rallied ahead 35-21 with four of the next five scores. When Midway pulled within a touchdown twice in the fourth period, Masion Brooks (35 yards) and McLean (42 yards) answered with long scoring runs.
• Eagles: McLean, 153 yards rushing, one touchdown (42 yards); Masion Brooks, 129 yards rushing, three touchdowns (14, 29, 35 yards), Javius Brooks, 112 yards rushing, two touchdowns (21, 3 yards); senior Ahmad Powell, two-point conversion pass to Javius Brooks and another running. Masion Brooks has a team-high eight TDs, McLean six; Javius Brooks has run for two and thrown for five.
• Last: Final regular season appearances in Lenon Fisher Stadium were acknowledged beforehand for seniors McLean, Javius Brooks, Powell, Corey Ballard, Nazire Smith, Kenneth Armstrong Jr., Connor Britt, Nathan Lacewell, Kory Smith, Donnie Ezzell, Willie Battle, Robert McKoy, Jaylan Britt, Jeremiah Jones, Zavarion Palmer and Sherman Monroe.
• Raiders: Quarterback Johnnie Holland, four touchdown passes, 258 yards passing on 12 completions; Casey Culbreth, 86 yards receiving, two touchdowns (46, 12 yards); Nate Smith, 94 yards receiving. Holland has 29 TD passes and more than 2,100 aerial yards this season.
• Next: East Bladen, 3-2 SAC-7, 4-5 overall, at Clinton on Friday; Midway, 2-3 SAC-7, 5-4 overall, hosts Fairmont on Friday.
This story authored by the Bladen Journal.