Photo by: Jairy C. Hunter MD/for the Journal Scene

The Green Wave football team warms up before a game.

The Green Wave hosts a key region matchup this week for its final home game of the regular season.

Summerville (6-3, 1-1) takes on Beaufort (4-5, 1-2) at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The Wave is hoping to bounce back from a loss to Ashley Ridge last week while the Eagles are looking to notch their second consecutive region win after defeating Colleton County a week ago.

Beaufort hasn’t had the success it had the past few years, but the Eagles put up more than 40 points in both their first two games of the season and kept all the games they lost tight with the exception of their contest with Wando, which Beaufort lost 43-21.

Summerville coach John McKissick is expecting a battle.

“Beaufort always plays us hard,” McKissick said. “They like to line up and come right at you. They are a hard-nosed football team so we can’t afford to melt down like we did last week.”

The Eagles like to run the ball and have a number of talented backs who are dangerous. Last week JaClay Mixon had a big night out of the Beaufort backfield to score two TDs. However, D’Vonta Cohen is considered to be one of the top backs in the area and the Eagles have other rushers.

The week before, the Eagles showed they can have balance as QB Alex Gregory completed 12 passes for 159 yards in a losing effort against Ashley Ridge.

Beaufort has a veteran defensive squad as it returned 7 starters on that side of the ball this year. Maliek Maldonado, who McKissick says is one of the best linebackers his team will face this year, anchors the group.

McKissick says his offense actually moved the ball better than Ashley Ridge did last week, but Summerville committed to many penalties and turned the ball over too much. Ashley Ridge converted three of several Summerville fumbles into touchdowns.

The Wave’s rushing attack seems to be getting back on track and Summerville does still have the ability to throw the ball. Its defense wasn’t as stout at Ashley Ridge as it has been most of the season, but any group is going to have an off night now and then. If the Wave can force a turnover or two of its own it could turn into a long night for the Eagles.

“Right now we are just taking one game at a time,” McKissick said. “The big thing is we have to stop hurting ourselves.”

Contact Roger Lee @ 873-9424 ext. 213 or rlee@journalscene.com

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