Eastern Wayne seals playoff bid with 60-54 win at Dudley

By John Joyce
Published in Sports on November 4, 2017 8:58 PM

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DUDLEY -- Rally Central.

Such was the fourth quarter last night in Halo Country, as Eastern Wayne scored 33 points to outlast ECC 3A rival and county foe Southern Wayne by a touchdown.

Ezekiel Best paced the Warriors' charge, going 17 of 36 through the air for 361 yards and five touchdowns. Marcus Rouse led the receiving corp,  catching 11 balls for 261 yards.

He also added five scores.

Junious Tyson played an outstanding game in two phases, rushing for 77 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. He also returned two kickoff for scores, totaling 151 yards.

Defensively, Nickolas Perkins helmed the attack, filing 15 tackles and a pair of sacks.

"In the fourth quarter, we never gave up, we barked on every down and fought for every yard," Eastern Wayne head coach Leander Oates said. "I refused to let them think that a game is over because of the early lead."

Southern Wayne, who led 34-20 at the break, was led by the electric Shawntwon Leach, who amassed 194 yards on 29 totes. He also scored five touchdowns.

Demetriuc Wright also played well, rushing for 117 yards and a score.

Josh McClain, Will Newsome and TJ Pearsall also scored for the Saints, who saw their final chance at victory this season slip away during a manic fourth quarter.

""This is a game we felt like we should have won, but at the end of the day, they needed it and wanted it more than we did," SW head coach Ronnie McClary Jr. said. "I'm still very proud of our young men and the job they've done this year... God has truly blessed Southern Wayne High School with great student-athletes."

Playoff implications

Eastern Wayne earned the No. 16 seed in next week's N.C. High School Athletic Association 3A state playoffs, and will begin its pursuit of glory on the road versus Western Alamance, the region's top seed.