The Hinesville Hurricanes opened their regular season in winning form Saturday with an easy 34-0 victory over the Tri-County Panthers.
Coach James Sharp said he was pleased with his team’s effort but said work still has to be done.
 “We’re coming together,” Sharp said. “They’re beginning to listen and they’re starting to work together. We still need more teamwork, but that will come in time.”
Hinesville wasted little time getting on the scoreboard.
After Tracy Lewis returned the opening kickoff to the Panthers’ 33, Joseph Matavao rumbled into the end zone for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage, and Devon Gray’s 2-point-conversion run put the Hurricanes up, 8-0.
The Hurricanes extended their lead to 14-0 on a 14-yard pass on fourth down from quarterback Frank Troupe to Jay Taylor. A 2-point-conversion try failed. Hinesville upped its lead to 20-0 on a touchdown from Gray before the first half ended.
Neither team scored in the third quarter. Hinesville’s Kendrick Badger and Tracy Carliol added TDs in the final quarter to salt the game away.
Afterward, coaches said they were pleased with the effort but stressed the importance of continuing to improve.
“This is the first time we were able to have five linemen on the field,” offensive coordinator Mike Jones said. “In our scrimmage, we had to plug in other players on our line, so these guys have a lot of work to do to work on their timing. On a positive note, our passing game should be pretty solid. Our quarterback is back and we have five or six solid receivers. Two have even played arena league ball, so we should be OK there.”