Spring Valley defensive lineman Kenny Stephens (#98) spent a good bit of time in the Marlboro County backfield. He had six tackles (one for a loss and one sack).

After hanging on to defeat Richland Northeast in the last game of the regular season and narrowly escaping the Conway Tigers in the opening round of the playoffs, Spring Valley finally gave itself some breathing room. The Vikings routed the visiting Bulldogs of Marlboro County 35–13 in the second round of the Division II Class 4A playoffs and will now face Richland Northeast in a rematch for the Lower State Championship.

Spring Valley survived several scares from Marlboro County including an 80 yard kick–off return for a touchdown to start the second half. But in the end, the Vikings’ opportunistic de-fense and powerful ground game were too much for the visiting Bulldogs.

The Vikings gained 214 yards rushing. Running back Brandon Johnson had 125 of those yards along with two touchdowns and 55 yards receiving. Quarterback B.J. Phillips added 26 yards rushing and 78 yards passing. Running back Nelson Drake also had 48 yards on the ground, including a 15 yard touchdown run.

Enough said! Spring Valley cheerleader Dominique Solone can’t wait to go for the Lower State title. The Vikings were impressive on defense even without the services of injured Shrine Bowl linebacker Kevin Thompson. The Viking defense had three sacks, three tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries, two interceptions, and four pass break-ups.

Spring Valley linebacker John Glaspie (#46) had eight tackles, one fumble recovery, two interceptions, and a touchdown. Also pictured are Erik Clanton (#95) and Norman Washingon (#34).