River Bluff hosted fellow Lexington One school Gilbert on Friday night and grinded out a tough 14-7 win, giving new head coach Perry Parks his first home victory as a Gator.

The young River Bluff squad has shown resilience, learning from mistakes that led to their two losses and making adjustments that ultimately led to their two wins. 

After suffering an opening game loss at Rock Hill, the Gators reduced the number of devastating big plays and bounced back with a win at Brookland-Cayce the following week. Then, after falling in the last seconds to Nation Ford in River Bluff's third game, the Gators found a way to stifle Gilbert’s offense down the stretch to secure the win in game four.

Friday night’s Greek-themed game presented the toga-clad student section and packed stands of The Swamp with a battle indicative of cross-town rivals, as neither team was able to put together sustained drives in a scoreless first quarter.

In the second quarter, Gilbert drove the field and scored on a Wynn Meetze three-yard carry. Noah Blackwell’s PAT put the Indians up 7-0 with 6:01 to go in the half. 

River Bluff responded with a drive of its own, capped by a Brayden Moore five-yard touchdown pass to Hayden Myers. Liam Flynn converted the extra point, tying the game at seven with just over two minutes remaining in the half.

The final score of the night occurred near the end of the third quarter when Moore hooked up with Darius Carter for a 76-yard touchdown strike. Flynn’s PAT put the Gators up 14-7. 

Myers led the Gators’ rushing attack with 95 yards on 24 carries. Moore threw for 203 yards on 12-for-22 passing and two touchdowns. Carter racked up 137 yards on five receptions for River Bluff.

Josiah Robinson was the Gators’ leading tackler with 17 total stops, including eight solos, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, and a fumble recovery. River Bluff’s defense created three turnovers, two interceptions and a fumble recovery. 

Quarterback Gray Gunter rushed for 92 yards on 20 carries. He completed three passes for 19 yards and two interceptions. Meetze carried the ball 18 times for 90 yards and a touchdown.

River Bluff will be back home in The Swamp to battle Cheraw next Friday, September 19th, for Homecoming. Gilbert will be on the road, facing North Augusta in the Indians' first game of the region season. Kick off is scheduled for 7:30 PM.