It was a shaky day for Hilton Head Prep’s offense, but Trevor Weldon’s phenomenal leg was all the Dolphins needed.
The senior kicker was the difference in the ballgame Friday, drilling a 45-yard field goal before launching through a school-record 50-yarder to lift Hilton Head Prep to a 6-0 home shutout win over Colleton Prep for its first 2-0 start since 2011.
“Breaking the record means the world to me,” Weldon said. “I’ve been working hard all offseason and summer because I wanted to rebound from a disappointing season last year from breaking my collarbone and not being 100 percent.”
After a quick HHP three-and-out opened the contest, the War Hawks took the momentum with a pair of explosive runs from quarterback Drew Murdaugh. But a holding call on third down halted the drive inside the Dolphin 45. Tristan Bonomo found his groove on the next possession, slinging a 16-yard pass to Gunner Askeland before Jake Rodney-Brown stormed past the War Hawk defense for a first down inside the CPA 30. Colleton Prep then stood tall to force a fourth down, but Weldon came up clutch, nailing a field goal from 45 yards to put the Dolphins on the board.
It looked like Hilton Head Prep would surge further in front in the closing seconds of the half, as Bonomo hit Christian Bueso for a 27-yard gain before Rodney-Brown’s stellar running brought the ball to the CPA 12. A pass interference call on fourth down gave the Dolphins a shot from the 2-yard-line with eight seconds left, but a determined War Hawk defense stuffed Rodney-Brown to keep it a slim 3-0 lead at halftime.
Murdaugh continued to be a problem for the Hilton Head Prep defense in the second half, but a rash of bad snaps and penalties kept the War Hawks from finishing off a pair of drives in the third quarter. Suddenly, a dazzling punt return from Askeland set the Dolphins up at the War Hawk 31, eying a chance to make it a two-score game. It quickly turned into another missed opportunity, as the Colleton Prep defense shut down a pair of Loncelle Daley runs while a false start marched Bonomo’s group backward. But Weldon came to the rescue. Despite coming up short on a 49-yard field goal earlier in the game, Weldon knew he had what it took to make one even longer.
With the Dolphin crowd waiting in anticipation, the senior superstar blistered a line-drive kick. This time, from a whopping 50 yards out, it had the distance. The grandstands erupted. Weldon’s blast broke the Hilton Head Prep record, and gave the Dolphins a 6-0 lead.
“Stepping into the 50-yarder, I just was thinking pretty positively since I’ve hit it plenty of times in practice, and have been working really hard with my holder AJ Barger and long snapper Danny Fernandez,” Weldon said.
The sideline was rocking, but the home team knew the game was far from over. Murdaugh, Cole Davis, and an impressive War Hawk offensive line moved the ball close to Dolphin territory as the fourth quarter continued. The dual-threat quarterback then kept the chains moving through the air, connecting on the run with Davis on third-and-9 to move the ball inside the HHP 40.
But just when it looked like Colleton Prep would finally break through, the Dolphins came up with the stop. Davis and Murdaugh were halted by a wall of Dolphins on three straight plays, and a desperation fourth-down pass was broken up to wipe yet another promising War Hawk drive away. After the HHP offense drained the clock to just one minute, Weldon came on for a curtain call to a sensational performance, booting a near-flawless punt out of bounds at the 8-yard-line to make the comeback effort even steeper. It never stood a chance, as Daley and company delivered a game-clinching sack to send the Dolphins to a 2-0 mark for the first time in 10 years.
Rodney-Brown was a force on the ground, racking up 80 yards on 16 carries to lead the Dolphin attack. After a monster 237-yard performance a week ago, the War Hawks did a masterful job on Daley, holding the junior to just 27 rushing yards. Bueso added a 27-yard catch, and Askeland caught two balls for 18 yards. After going 3-for-3 a week ago, Weldon continued his incredible start to his senior campaign, hitting 2-of-3 including a school-record 50-yard bomb.
Murdaugh was marvelous on the ground for the War Hawks, leading all rushers with 108 yards on 23 carries.
Hilton Head Prep (2-0) will take next week off before heading to St. Andrew’s on Sept. 10, while Colleton Prep (0-2) hosts Northwood Academy on Friday.
By Wes Kerr
