Two dominant backs in Kamari Holloway and Jayden Graham are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Southern School of Energy and Sustainability Spartans will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Lumberton Pirates at 7:00 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Southern School of Energy and Sustainability has five straight wins, Lumberton has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Last Thursday, everything came up roses for Southern School of Energy and Sustainability against Chapel Hill as the squad secured a 49-10 victory. Given the Spartans' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 114th, while the Tigers are ranked 269th) , the win wasn't entirely unexpected.
Jonathan Dillon
| 10/30/25 @ Chapel Hill | 4 |
| 10/24/25 vs East Chapel Hill | 4 |
| 08/22/25 vs Wake Forest | 3 |
| 10/03/25 @ Northern Durham | 2 |
| 10/17/25 vs Hillside | 1 |
| + 1 more games |
Jonathan Dillon had another great game (as he tends to do), throwing for 168 yards and four TDs on only 13 passes, while also rushing for 41 yards. He has become a key player for Southern School of Energy and Sustainability: the team is undefeated when he posts at least three passing touchdowns, but 3-4 otherwise. Al-John Cephas helped out on the ground, rushing for 87 yards.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Southern School of Energy and Sustainability was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 391 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in November of 2024.
Special teams also deserves some recognition, posting 13 points in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Lance Henderson, who ran a punt back for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Lumberton fought the good fight in their overtime contest against Purnell Swett on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Rams by a score of 24-21. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Pirates have suffered against the Rams since November 8, 2019.
Lumberton's defeat dropped their record down to 3-6. As for Southern School of Energy and Sustainability, their win bumped their record up to 6-4.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's matchup: Southern School of Energy and Sustainability has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 410.4 total yards per game. It's a different story for Lumberton, though, as they've been averaging an even more impressive 193.1 total yards. Will Southern School of Energy and Sustainability be able to march up the field at their leisure again, or will the Pirates flip the script? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other football content.
