AIKEN — The first few minutes were up for grabs, but Aiken High School dominated down the stretch in its home football opener Aug. 20, coming within about 80 seconds of a shutout at home in winning 31-7 over Lakeside, from Evans, Georgia.
The contest ran for almost three hours and included several players apparently succumbing to cramps during an evening when the temperature was around 90 degrees at kickoff.
Darius Walker put Aiken on the scoreboard first, racking up a five-yard run with 8:39 left in the second quarter, and Tanner Padgett's pass to Tarrant McKenzie for a 58-yard touchdown helped pave the way for the home team's 14-0 lead at halftime.
Walker ran for his second touchdown of the evening in 6:51 to go in the third quarter, covering 20 yards, and Padgett followed up at the 4:51 mark with a 37-yard scoring pass to Micheal Francis.
A Hornet drive stalled at the 22-yard line with 2:45 left in the third frame, and Zachary Groseclose connected on a field goal to help Aiken head into the fourth quarter with a 31-0 lead and a prime opportunity for second- and third-string players to rack up playing time.
Lakeside, also playing in its season opener, appeared to break the shutout with 8:32 left in the fourth, by way of a 52-yard pass, but a holding penalty nixed the score, and the Panthers finally lit up the scoreboard with 1:17 left in the game, as Ben Herrington threw to Lawson Springs for a five-yard touchdown.
Steve Hibbitts, heading into his second season as Aiken's head coach, credited Lakeside with a strong effort and noted that his own squad "made a lot of mistakes in the first half."
The difference, he said, came from "big plays" by such Hornets as Walker, Padgett, Francis and Allen Cummings.
"We're just going to have to clean everything up — kind of sloppy in parts," the coach said.
Darrenton Jones, on Aiken's roster as a lineman on both sides of the ball, expressed gratitude for Hibbitts and strong coaching support in general.
"I couldn't even put into words how much we've grown," Jones said.
Padgett said the home team "came out a little bit slow" but finished strong.
"I thought we ended out well and put things together and got comfortable in there ... I think everybody got a little playing time tonight," he added.
Aiken's next action is to be Aug. 28, on the road against Swansea, in Lexington County, starting at 7:30 p.m. The Panthers' next date will be at home on Aug. 28 versus another Aiken County team: Midland Valley, with kickoff at 7 p.m.
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