Then there was one: Greenville wins SCC battle of unbeatens over Pana

( This story has been updated to add new photos.)

GREENVILLE — The wet football turf at Greenville was bound to cause some issues on the same night as the remnants of Hurricane Helene made central and southern Illinois a wet, windy mess.

On the first play from scrimmage, Greenville's top running back, Dayton Oliver slipped for a 2-yard loss. On the next play, he had to be carried off the field.

While the Comets had to play the other 47 minutes without their star rusher, senior Declan Graber stepped up for two touchdowns and 129 yards on 23 carries to keep Greenville undefeated with a 21-7 win over Pana in a game that could likely determine the South Central Conference championship.

"It feels great," Graber said. "That's not usually my spot where I run, but too bad Dayton had an ankle injury and I stepped up."

The Comets were ranked No. 8 in Class 4A in the latest Associated Press statewide poll.

Greenville coach Todd Hutchinson was proud his team didn't lose focus following the early injury. Oliver was taken away from the field on a cart.

"We have great kids," Hutchinson said. "I love them, they do a lot of things right, they stay locked in, they practice well, they take care of business on and off the field and in the classroom. That's their character. Dayton's a special player, we're family. But he goes down and it's next-man-up. We were playing for D.O. (after the injury)."

Before Pana had a chance to touch the ball, Graber, a senior, caught two passes for 27 yards before sprinting into the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown with 9 minutes, 40 seconds left in the opening quarter. Gavin File made the first of his three point-after kicks, despite the crosswind, to give the Comets (5-0 overall, 5-0 SCC) a 7-0 lead.

By the time the quarter was out, Greenville put up another score when senior quarterback Ben Hutchinson found fellow senior Eli Shadowens for a 46-yard touchdown pass. It was the second time in three plays the QB and receiver hooked up for a big gain. On first-and-five from the home team's 22, Shadowens ripped the ball away from Pana defensive back Cash Lynch to turn back an interception for a 32-yard gain.

"We had the two touchdowns right off the bat and that really put a damper on (Pana's) offense and defense," Graber said.

The wind gusts didn't prevent Hutchinson from finishing with 152 yards passing and the one TD while completing 12 of 19 passes.

Pana's red zone blues

Three times in the first half, the Panthers (4-1 overall and in the SCC) found themselves in the red zone. All three times, Pana came away with no points.

Pana looked to tie Greenville early when the Panthers had first-and-10 from the Comets' 16 after Sam Sims picked up a 50-yard rushing gain. After Cayden Durbin moved the down marker up three yards, Pana had two negative-yardage plays in a row before quarterback Wyatt Kile's fourth-and-11 pass fell incomplete.

"Our coaches do a great job: our defensive coaches and our offensive coaches, alike," Hutchinson said. "We've got a great staff that takes care of our kids, works hard and puts guys in the right spot. And then you've got to give all the credit to our kids, who were out there performing and working their tails off."

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With Greenville ahead 14-0 in the second quarter, the Panthers had a first down at the Greenville 15, but Pana cost itself on fourth-and-six with a 5-yard false start penalty. A Greenville defender tipped Kile's pass at the goal line for another turnover on downs.

Finally, Pana got the ball back with 2:41 left in the half at its own 31. On fourth-and-four from the Greenville 45, Kile hooked up with Parker Moore for a 6-yard gain. On third-and-six from the 11, Lynch caught a 6-yard pass for a first-and-goal from the Comets' 5. But a spike to stop the clock and two incompletions left Pana going into halftime still searching for its first points.

"I was just hoping that our guys were going to be more physical than what we came out," Pana coach Trevor Higgins said. "We got out-physicaled for the first time this season and that's sad to see."

Harbert fights through injury

Pana senior running back Isaiah Harbert, who had been battling a leg injury suffered in last week's 51-24 win over North Mac, gutted out a 71-yard effort on 18 carries.

"When we say we got out-physicaled, we've got a couple of guys who came in and (played hard)," Higgins said. "Harbert just has that last name you can depend on. We're trying to get him (healthy) for playoffs, as well. We would've loved to have had him in all game, but long term, for his health, we need him healthy for the playoffs."

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Harbert said he'd love to have another chance at Greenville after losing the last two matchups, including 20-6 last year with four Pana turnovers.

"It was a mental battle the entire game; you just have to keep pushing and pushing," Harbert said. "I'd give anything in the world for another Greenville game. We're right there — they are a very good football team, I'm not taking anything away from that — but whenever something like that happens, you always want the extra chance."

Kile finished 12-for-34 with 122 yards and one touchdown. The wind made it difficult on both quarterbacks, but Higgins felt like there were some unfortunate dropped passes.

"We had our opportunities to make plays and we had big drops and missed blocks at times and you've got to capitalize on them against a good team," Higgins said.

Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, ryan.mahan@sj-r.com , Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Then there was one: Greenville wins SCC battle of unbeatens over Pana