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AVON PARK - Clearwater Central Catholic got two early touchdown passes from Andrew Nowels and made the lead stand up for a 14-7 win over Avon Park Tuesday night at Joe Franza Stadium.
The game was delayed from Oct. 21 by Hurricane Wilma, but Tuesday's weather turned out to be worse than the original date. Steady rain in the second half put a crimp in the Devils' pass-oriented offense and they couldn't run much against the bigger CCC defense.
Riley Cooper had the biggest role for CCC, which stretched its winning streak to seven. The 6-foot-4 senior receiver had a team-high six catches for 96 yards and a touchdown. He also had four punts of more than 60 yards and ran a fake punt 34 yards for a first down.
Cooper's 49-yard catch on third and 12 and a pass interference call on another third down set up his 8-yard touchdown reception for an early 7-0 lead. He caught an 18-yarder to set up CCC's next score, Chris Campbell's 2-yard touchdown catch for a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.
The Red Devils (7-3) countered with a big play from Rafael Johnson, who turned a short dumpoff pass from a pressured T.K. Hill into a 64-yard touchdown to cut it to 14-7 with five minutes left in the half.
The rain returned with a vengeance during halftime and kept both offenses from getting much going. The closest either team came to scoring was when the Devils drove 63 yards in nine plays but were stopped on downs at the CCC 17 with eight minutes left.
CCC's Mark Ceraolo recovered a fumble to end Avon Park's final chance inside the final two minutes.
Andrew Nowells was 8-of-14 for 120 yards and two touchdowns. Chris Campbell caught the other scoring pass. Ronnie Harris had 30 carries for 136 yards.
- Times staff writer Bob Putnam contributed to this report.