Much like the looming storm they were playing hours ahead of, Bulloch Academy was a methodical and effective force on Friday night. The Gators started churning early on, built up momentum and eventually washed over the visitors from Savannah Country Day, earning a 34-7 victory at Gator Alley.

“This was a big game after a big win over Strong Rock and an open week,” BA coach Aaron Phillips said.

Phillips mentioned that the extra downtime gave his team plenty of opportunities to hear about how the Hornets (2-6) have been struggling and how they had fared worse against common opponents.

“We just call that rat poison, you know?” Phillips said. “This was easily a trap game if you listen to all of that. We knew we might play in some messy conditions and I think our kids mostly did a great job. We had some big chunk plays and then we were able to run. We were able to grind out first downs and control the time of possession, keep them on the field a bunch, so I was happy with that.”

A 14-0 halftime lead was built on a pair of Connor Perry touchdowns, both coming from inside the Country Day 10 yard line. The advantage quickly doubled to 28-0 in the third quarter when B.J. Smart ran in from 15 yards and Perry plowed over the goal line from 5 yards.

Then the Bulloch defense settled in, consistently breaking through the line and shutting down the SCD passing game before it had a chance to try and help the Hornets back into the fight.

Perry added one more touchdown plunge from inside of five yards in the fourth quarter and the Hornets weren’t able to dent the scoreboard until finding the end zone against BA reserves in the waning minutes.

The win bumps the Gators’ record to 7-1 on the season. More importantly, they now stand at 1-0 in region play. Bulloch makes its play for a region crown over the final two weeks of the regular season, travelling to St. Andrew’s next week before finishing off the regular season slate against Frederica on Oct. 24 in Statesboro.