TWIN CITY — The Clinch County Panthers did something no other team has been able to do. The Panthers virtually stopped Washaun Ealey cold for two quarters of football.

Good thing for the defending Class A state champion Emanuel County Institute Bulldogs that four quarters make a game.

Ealey shook off a rough first half in which he gained only 19 yards on six carries, and scored four touchdowns in the second half, lifting the Bulldogs to a 33-21 win in the second round of the playoffs.

Clinch (9-3) entered halftime holding a 14-7 lead. The Panthers used some trickery to take a halftime lead. On a fourth-and-6 play from the ECI 31-yard line, Panther quarterback Vintavious Cooper threw a lateral to receiver Dominique Ellis, who turned and hit Brandon Richardson for a touchdown with only 16 seconds remaining in the first half.

But Ealey took control in the second half. The University of Georgia-bound senior running back scored on runs of 3 and 59 yards to give the Bulldogs the lead at 21-14 entering the fourth quarter.

In the final frame, Ealey scored two more times on runs of 25 and 46 yards, the latter coming on a fourth-and-1, giving ECI a 33-21 lead.

Ealey finished with 255 yards and four touchdowns on 30 carries. He also added a fourth quarter interception while playing defense.

ECI’s Dexter Moody scored in the first quarter on a 22-yard pass from Michael Robertson on a fourth-and-20. Moody also delivered a bone-crushing hit on Panthers receiver Trey Richardson in the fourth that jarred the ball loose. The Bulldogs’ senior linebacker recovered the fumble himself, and ECI ran the clock out from there.