ANOTHER WIN!!!
PHOTOS/VIDEO/STATS: Prep football Week 9: Lely pulls away from Palmetto Ridge
By ADAM FISHER
Originally published 10:45 p.m., October 30, 2009 Updated 11:32 p.m., October 30, 2009
NAPLES — After three mediocre quarters of football, it took Lely just five plays to turn Friday’s home game against Palmetto Ridge into a blowout.
The Trojans capitalized on a Palmetto Ridge turnover early in the fourth quarter and scored twice in a four-play span to beat Palmetto Ridge 21-0. It was the fourth straight victory for Lely (6-3).
Lely went three-and-out in its first two possessions of the second half. On its second punt, Palmetto Ridge (4-4) bungled the reception and the Trojans recovered at the Bears’ 11-yard line with 11 minutes to play in the fourth quarter.
The next play Lely quarterback Sean O’Regan threw a high fade pass to Romanthi Mathurin in the back corner of the end zone for a score. Following a Bears’ punt, the Trojans needed only four plays to drive 72 yards on their next possession. Mathurin scored again on the exact same pass from O’Regan with 4:09 to play.
“We’d been running those fades all week in practice, about 30, 40, 50 reps,” O’Regan said. “Romanthi wanted the ball. He’s been very confident ever since the Naples game.”
The touchdown receptions were Mathurin’s second and third of the season. His first was in overtime two weeks ago against Naples, the game-winning score in the Trojans’ Coconut Bowl upset.
All Lely has to do to secure its second straight regional playoff appearance is win next week at home against Barron Collier. The Trojans can still win the Class 3A-District 12 championship with a win next week and a Lehigh loss against Cypress Lake.
By beating Naples on Friday, Lehigh controls its own destiny for the playoffs. A victory next week gives the Lightning, a three-win team last season, a playoff berth. If Lely beats Barron Collier and Lehigh wins, then the Lightning win the district title.
Outside of its two scoring drives, Lely didn’t do much else in the second half. The Trojans ran just 11 plays and had the ball for less than seven minutes after halftime. Lely gained 109 yards in the second half, 64 coming on one Darion Hall run.
Hall finished with 147 yards on 14 carries. The University of Miami recruit has 338 yards his past two games.
“Palmetto made some mistakes, especially on that fumbled punt,” Trojans coach Dave Miller said. “We’ve got to be opportunistic, and that’s how we played tonight. That’s how we’ve played the last couple weeks.”
Lely’s four-game winning streak has been spurred by its defense. The Trojans have given up just 19 points during the streak, including just one touchdown. Friday was the defense’s first shutout of the year.
Palmetto Ridge struggled offensively for the second straight game and lost for the third time in four games. Before being shutout Friday, the Bears were held to seven points in last week’s loss to Cape Coral-Baker.
The Bears drove 74 yards on its first possession, which resulted in Guillermo Romero missing a 27-yard field goal. Palmetto Ridge was held to 106 yards in the second half, including just 10 on the ground.
“(Lely) just beat us in the trenches,” Bears coach Dan Newbrough said. “Their defensive line destroyed our offensive line. They just took over the game.
“We were in that game for three quarters. We had opportunity after opportunity and we didn’t capitalize. Bottom line, (the Trojans) got it done when they needed to get it done and we didn’t.”
Lely took a 7-0 lead at halftime. Both teams went on long marches down the field on their first possession, but the Trojans were the only ones to capitalize.
Frankie Pugh’s 5-yard touchdown plunge in the first quarter was the only scoring in the first half. The Trojans got into the red zone again in the second quarter, but O’Regan threw an interception to Palmetto Ridge’s Richard Jean-Baptiste at the Bears’ 1-yard line.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Lely vs. Naples 2009
PHOTOS/VIDEOS/STATS: Prep football Week 7: Lely goes nuts and upsets No. 6 Naples in OT in Coconut Bowl
By ADAM FISHER
Originally published 10:50 p.m., October 16, 2009 Updated 12:18 a.m., October 17, 2009
NAPLES — Lely came into Staver Field on Friday with a message for host Naples, and it was written clearly on the Trojans’ wristbands.
“Battle.”
The Trojans outfought Naples, overcoming a sluggish offense with key defensive stops and a big play when it mattered in a 12-6 overtime victory in the 36th Coconut Bowl.
The Lely offense didn’t produce much but only needed one play to end the game. In overtime, after Naples missed a field goal, Trojans quarterback Sean O’Regan lofted a pass to the back corner of the end zone. Romanthi Mathurin, Lely’s 6-foot-2 senior, jumped and made a fingertip catch for the winning touchdown.
“It was automatic,” Mathurin said of his leaping grab. “I do it all the time, I just had to come out and do it in a game. I knew it was all on me to win this game. We couldn’t run it and we weren’t scoring, so I knew I had to do it.”
Mathurin’s first touchdown of the year came after perhaps Lely’s biggest defensive play of the season. The Trojans (4-3, 3-1 3A-12) held Naples, who had the ball first in overtime, to just 3 yards on three plays on its possession.
On fourth down, the Eagles (4-2, 2-1) lined up for a 23-yard field goal. Lely’s Mackinton Dorleant blocked Takeshi Okubo’s kick to hold Naples scoreless.
The Trojans blocked two field goals Friday and Okubo missed another. Both teams had a chance to win the game in regulation but missed fourth-quarter field goals with the score tied.
Lely won the Coconut Bowl trophy for the first time since 2005. It was just the Trojans’ second win over Naples in the last 11 tries.
“We knew it was going to be a fight. We knew it was going to be a battle,” Lely running back Darion Hall said. “That’s why we wrote ‘battle’ on our wrists. This shows us that we still got it.
“We finally got that nut back,” Hall added, referring to the game’s trophy that features a coconut on a wooden post.
Lely won despite just 102 yards of offense, 10 which came on the Trojans’ one overtime play. The Trojans were held to 29 yards rushing, and the game-winning touchdown was only O’Regan’s fourth completion of the game.
Naples rushed for 242 yards and finished with 307 yards of offense but managed just two field goals. The Eagles got inside Lely’s 20-yard line four times and couldn’t score touchdowns.
“We made critical errors on offense,” Kramer said. “Our offense became anemic once we got in the red zone. We have to fix that.”
Lely’s win gave Naples its second regular-season loss for the first time since 2005. The Eagles went 6-4 that year and a loss to Lely in the final week of the season knocked them out of the playoffs.
Kramer said next week’s game at Barron Collier is a must-win for Naples if the Eagles hope to make the playoffs. Naples and Lely both have one loss in Class 3A-District 12, while Barron Collier is 3-0.
After an Okubo field goal knotted the game at 6-all with less than 10 minutes left in the game, Lely’s Jhony Faustin electrified the visiting fans with a 95-yard kickoff return to the 5-yard line. Penalties pushed the Trojans back before Adolfo Bedolla pushed a 27-yard field goal wide left.
On their next possession, the Golden Eagles drove to the Lely 16 but couldn’t convert a third down. Okubo missed a 34-yarder wide right with 1:21 to play.
© 2009 Scripps Newspaper Group — Online
By ADAM FISHER
Originally published 10:50 p.m., October 16, 2009 Updated 12:18 a.m., October 17, 2009
NAPLES — Lely came into Staver Field on Friday with a message for host Naples, and it was written clearly on the Trojans’ wristbands.
“Battle.”
The Trojans outfought Naples, overcoming a sluggish offense with key defensive stops and a big play when it mattered in a 12-6 overtime victory in the 36th Coconut Bowl.
The Lely offense didn’t produce much but only needed one play to end the game. In overtime, after Naples missed a field goal, Trojans quarterback Sean O’Regan lofted a pass to the back corner of the end zone. Romanthi Mathurin, Lely’s 6-foot-2 senior, jumped and made a fingertip catch for the winning touchdown.
“It was automatic,” Mathurin said of his leaping grab. “I do it all the time, I just had to come out and do it in a game. I knew it was all on me to win this game. We couldn’t run it and we weren’t scoring, so I knew I had to do it.”
Mathurin’s first touchdown of the year came after perhaps Lely’s biggest defensive play of the season. The Trojans (4-3, 3-1 3A-12) held Naples, who had the ball first in overtime, to just 3 yards on three plays on its possession.
On fourth down, the Eagles (4-2, 2-1) lined up for a 23-yard field goal. Lely’s Mackinton Dorleant blocked Takeshi Okubo’s kick to hold Naples scoreless.
The Trojans blocked two field goals Friday and Okubo missed another. Both teams had a chance to win the game in regulation but missed fourth-quarter field goals with the score tied.
Lely won the Coconut Bowl trophy for the first time since 2005. It was just the Trojans’ second win over Naples in the last 11 tries.
“We knew it was going to be a fight. We knew it was going to be a battle,” Lely running back Darion Hall said. “That’s why we wrote ‘battle’ on our wrists. This shows us that we still got it.
“We finally got that nut back,” Hall added, referring to the game’s trophy that features a coconut on a wooden post.
Lely won despite just 102 yards of offense, 10 which came on the Trojans’ one overtime play. The Trojans were held to 29 yards rushing, and the game-winning touchdown was only O’Regan’s fourth completion of the game.
Naples rushed for 242 yards and finished with 307 yards of offense but managed just two field goals. The Eagles got inside Lely’s 20-yard line four times and couldn’t score touchdowns.
“We made critical errors on offense,” Kramer said. “Our offense became anemic once we got in the red zone. We have to fix that.”
Lely’s win gave Naples its second regular-season loss for the first time since 2005. The Eagles went 6-4 that year and a loss to Lely in the final week of the season knocked them out of the playoffs.
Kramer said next week’s game at Barron Collier is a must-win for Naples if the Eagles hope to make the playoffs. Naples and Lely both have one loss in Class 3A-District 12, while Barron Collier is 3-0.
After an Okubo field goal knotted the game at 6-all with less than 10 minutes left in the game, Lely’s Jhony Faustin electrified the visiting fans with a 95-yard kickoff return to the 5-yard line. Penalties pushed the Trojans back before Adolfo Bedolla pushed a 27-yard field goal wide left.
On their next possession, the Golden Eagles drove to the Lely 16 but couldn’t convert a third down. Okubo missed a 34-yarder wide right with 1:21 to play.
© 2009 Scripps Newspaper Group — Online
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