South Carolina’s winter 15s league play concluded this past Saturday in Columbia, SC.
The marquee matchup of the day’s slate of games was Greer vs Oceanside Collegiate Academy. Both teams, which know each other well, were undefeated in league play coming into the matchup. They’ve met in the last two state championships with Greer coming out on top last year. With both teams coming in undefeated, they were guaranteed to meet again in the state championship scheduled for February 22nd in Columbia.
Game 1 – Greer (GRR #32) vs Oceanside Collegiate Academy
Greer found its form early in the game and dominated from start to finish winning 35-5. The opening kickoff saw Greer field a deep kick. Senior flyhalf JW Sarkees received the kick and sent a well placed kick back deep into OCA territory. Greer was able to gain possession and build multiple phases that resulted in a try in the opening minutes.
“The first half against OCA was the first time all season we executed our game plan and pattern with the consistency we want from the boys,” said Greer Head Coach Warren Taylor. It showed on the scoreboard as Greer raced out to a 21-0 first half lead.
The second half saw OCA establish more possession putting pressure on the Greer defense. OCA was led by big hits from senior No. 8 Wes Stone and hard running from big junior forward Mike Jones.
“We had some controversial calls that got us a man down,” said Taylor. “But our boys really picked up their defense and shut OCA’s attack down only giving up one try.”
Greer saw balanced scoring on the day with four different players accounting for their five tries. JW Sarkees was named man of the match for controlling the game at flyhalf and going 5-for-5 on conversions. Other notable performers included junior prop Adrian Stencel, sophomore flanker William Durst, sophomore prop Jason Sprague, and senior center Eli Smith.
