Sports - High School

Monday, Nov. 09, 2009

Familiar foes for state playoffs

With the regular season in the rearview mirror, eight members of the Sun Herald South Mississippi Top 10 begin to check the roadmap to Jackson.

The destination is Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium on the weekend of Dec. 5-6.

And if this Friday’s playoff opponents look familiar, that’s because they are.

Top-ranked St. Stanislaus, 10-1 with an eight-game win streak, is one of the exceptions — in a way. SSC moved into the No. 1 spot in the Sun Herald rankings with a 49-21 win over Quitman and Harrison Central’s 27-25 upset loss to Hancock.

The Rockachaws travel to Columbia for the their second round Class 4A playoff game. SSC last faced Columbia from 1997-2000, and Columbia swept all four games in the series.

But Coach Forrest Williams said the Rockachaws did square off with Columbia in a 7-on-7 game in the summer.

“We played them in the championship game of a 7-on-7 tournament at Southern Miss,‘‘ Williams said. “They beat us at the end, and we thought they were more celebratory than necessary. Our guys remember that and look forward to playing them.

“We are excited. I know we as a school are in uncharted waters. We can’t practice (Monday) due to the storm. So we get an extra day of rest and a chance to recharge the competitive batteries.’’

Ocean Springs (9-2) moved into second place in the Sun Herald rankings, and the Greyhounds face Hattiesburg in Greyhound Stadium in the first round of the 6A playoffs. The two teams have squared off the last two years in the playoffs, both in the opening round. Hattiesburg won 28-17 last year and OSHS won 31-24 in 2007.

“We’re playing solid, good defense,’’ Ocean Springs coach Todd Mangum said. “Offensively, we’ve been able to run the football. We’ve just got to keep getting better at what we’re doing. Now, it is a one-game season. If you win, you go on. If you lose, you pack it in.

“They run the spread offense, and the offense revolves around their running back (Marcquise Hosey) and quarterback (Tevin Chapman). They are both solid players.’’

Hosey has rushed for 1,330 yards while Chapman has rushed for 1,097 yards and thrown for 1,008.

Third-ranked Moss Point (9-2) hosts Brookhaven while fourth-ranked Picayune (7-3) hosts No. 10 D’Iberville (5-6). Should Moss Point and Picayune win, they would face each other in the second round.

Fifth-ranked Harrison Central (9-2) entertains Oak Grove while No. 6 George County (7-4) goes to Meridian. Seventh-ranked Gautier (7-4) entertains Wayne County.

The Harrison Central-Oak Grove game is a rematch of their first-round playoff game from a year ago, one in which Oak Grove won 27-20 at Oak Grove.

This is the first home playoff game for Harrison Central in 18 seasons. Harrison Central knocked off Clinton 28-26 in 1991 when Steve Metz was the head coach. HCHS also had a home playoff game in 1989, a one-point loss to Hattiesburg.

The remainder of the Sun Herald Top 10 — with the exception of D’Iberville — is collecting its equipment. Gulfport finished at No. 8 with a winning record of 6-5. Likewise, No. 9 Stone finished with a winning record at 6-5, their first winning record since 2000. Hancock, with is tied with D’Iberville at No 10, finished at 5-6. That is Hancock’s best record since 2002.