Hillsborough: Around the county

A look at the rest of the games last night

By Times writers
Published September 2, 2006

ALONSO 28, TAMPA BAY TECH 0

TAMPA - A strong Alonso defense and special teams contributed to a rout of Tampa Bay Tech on Friday night.

Alonso's first score came at the end of an 80-yard drive that was capped by a 4-yard rushing touchdown.

Alonso's special teams blocked and recovered a punt in the end zone to finish the half at 14-0.

In the second half, Alonso scored twice more on runs of 7 and 31 yards to up its lead to 28.

With less than a minute to play, Tech mounted one final push to score but two incomplete passes and an Alonso sack secured the shutout.

- PATRICK NGUYEN, Times Correspondent

Hillsborough 42, Blake 8

TAMPA - Running back Iziah Wyche rushed for three touchdowns and Hillsborough dominated. Both teams are 1-1.

Blake took a short-lived 8-6 lead midway through the second quarter on a Mark Mosquera to Ryan Davis 10-yard touchdown pass and 2-point conversion.

But the Terriers took the lead for good on Wyche's 6-yard run, capping a 60-yard, 11-play drive with 1:23 left in the first half.

Hillsborough cornerback Andreas Ashwood intercepted a pass in the third quarter and returned it 28 yards to Blake's 9, setting up Wyche's third TD.

Blake was limited to 20 yards offense in the second half and 121 overall. The Terriers' ground attack produced 252 yards, led by Wyche's 78. Lindsey Lamar and Langston Reason also rushed for Hillsborough touchdowns and linebacker Colin Carter scored on a 26-yard fumble return.

-DON JENSEN, Times Correspondent

LETO 20, BLOOMINGDALE 13

BLOOMINGDALE - Leto put one into the win column in a game that was in doubt until the final two minutes.

Greg McDaniel took a handoff on the first play of the second half and ran down the right sideline for a 75-yard touchdown to put Bloomingdale on top. However, the ball was fumbled on the extra-point attempt and Bloomingdale's scoring was finished for the night.

Darius McRoy tied the score for the Falcons with a 1 yard plunge in the third, but their kick failed too.

Leto linebacker Donnie Wise scored the winning touchdown in the final four minutes by taking the ball away from the Bulls quarterback and running 29 yards.

"This was a very gutsy performance for our guys tonight, ," Leto coach Hugh Dehnert said.

- TERRY JONES, Times correspondent

Newsome 29, Brandon 0

LITHIA - Solid defense and a pounding ground game proved too much for Brandon. Newsome's defense was motivated by the mid-week loss of junior linebacker Sam Johnson to a broken knee, according to defensive lineman Jordan Mims, who had a sack and two fumble recoveries Friday.

In total, the Wolves had four sacks, including three on Brandon's first offensive drive, and an interception by Rex Warren.

The Wolves rushed the ball 50 times for 298 yards with Collin O'Connor leading the team with 119 yards and a touchdown.

For the Eagles, running back Mike Brown averaged a little more than 16 yards per carry, but made only three rushes after not playing until the second half. Brandon coach John Lima had no comment on why Brown sat the first half.

- JARRETT GUTHRIE, Times correspondent

FREEDOM 21, SICKLES 3

TAMPA - Despite missing several players due to injuries and disciplinary reasons, Freedom (1-1) bounced back from last week's shutout against Wharton.

According to Patriots coach Adam Stegeman, seven players were suspended from the game for violating team rules. One of those players was Matt Patchan, the 6-foot-7, 265-pound mainstay of the offensive and defensive lines.

The Patriots couldn't get enough push to score on four chances after a first and goal from the Sickles 1-yard line following a blocked punt by Cass Couey.

Louis Bonnet shook off a slow start to blast through the line for an 80-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter. He finished with 137 yards on 13 carries.

The Gryphons (0-2) were within 9-3 at the half after a 37-yard field goal by Daniel Winsey, but their 14-play, 57-yard drive in the third stalled on a holding penalty.

-JEREMY RASMUSSEN, Times correspondent

Wharton 14, Plant City 0

PLANT CITY - Wharton's pregame routine was interrupted when its home game was switched to the road, but the resulting Wildcats' performance was business as usual.

Playing on the road because of poor field conditions at home, Wharton used its normal dose of defense and running back Joel Miller to methodically handle Plant City. With their second shutout in a row, the Wildcats improved to 2-0 and ran their regular-season winning streak to 12 games.

After a scoreless first quarter, Wharton took the lead just before halftime when quarterback Joshua Powell ran 15 yards for a touchdown. The seven-play drive was highlighted by Miller, who caught a 26-yard pass and accounted for 49 yards on the drive.

Wharton completed its scoring in the fourth quarter when Powell found Andre Dawson for a 27-yard pass. Miller led all rushers with 111 yards on 16 carries while Powell was 9-for-18 for 88 yards.

- ROD GIPSON, Times correspondent

TAMPA CATHOLIC 21, CCC 14

TAMPA - Senior quarterback Dickie de Lama led the Crusaders to an early lead, as Tampa Catholic reached the end zone on its first three possessions. Clearwater Central Catholic scored two touchdowns in the second quarter to keep it close, but neither team scored in the second half.

De Lama completed all of his passes in the first half, going 8-for-8 for 133 yards. However, he struggled while completing half his passes in the second half, throwing two interceptions and giving up a fumble.

"It was a tale of two halves," said Tampa Catholic coach Bob Henriquez, whose Crusaders won their second straight game. "Offensively, we turned it over (in the second half), and defensively, we made the stops."

Down by seven points late in the game, Clearwater Central Catholic still had hope until de Lama converted on third and nine with 2:27 remaining, allowing Tampa Catholic to kneel on the ball and run the clock out.

- KEVIN SMETANA, Times correspondent

Keswick Christian 21, Berkeley Prep 7

ST. PETERSBURG - It starts with the offensive line, and despite Berkeley Prep's efforts, it ended with Keswick Christian's second-ever win over the Buccaneers.

In a monumental win for the smaller school - albeit the No. 1-ranked Class B team in the state - junior Tyler Johansson, Josh Hansen, Trey Tomlinson, and Kolby Crider, alongside sophomore Ethan Engelhardt and freshman Scott Oliver confronted a Berkeley defense intent on holding back Crusader tailback Jared DiMaggio from setting school records like he did last week with over 200 yards.

Instead, from the start of the second quarter, the Crusader line gave quarterback Jared Stacy time to find all-state receiver Tony Anderson for a pair of touchdowns that put Keswick up 14-7 at halftime, and for good.

- ERIC MUSKATEVC, Times correspondent

ROUNDUP

King 15, Gaither 11: Wide receiver Lionel Fuentes scored a touchdown and then ran in a two-point conversion off a botched snap to put King ahead Friday night.

"Everything went well for us tonight. We ran the ball well, had excellent special teams, and the defense really set the tone for us tonight," King coach Joe Severino said.

Miami Belen Jesuit 38, Tampa Jesuit 14: Miami Belen Jesuit jumped to an insurmountable 31-7 halftime lead. Miami's offensive line dominated all night, opening the running game. Tampa Jesuit running back Kevin Valenti accounted for 250 total yards. The senior returned a kickoff for a touchdown and rushed for more than 100 yards.

Tampa Baptist 13, Winter Haven All Saints 0: Matt Reynolds scored two rushing touchdowns, made an extra point and recorded 16 tackles. The Rams offense accounted for 263 yards, but the defense controlled the game.

"Our defense really stepped up tonight and shut down doors," Rams coach Dennis Duggan said.

Cambridge 27, Bradenton Prep 20: After trailing late in the fourth quarter 20-7, David Bain switched from offensive lineman to fullback and scored two rushing touchdowns to pull Cambridge back into the game. Quarterback Ryan Horan connected with Josh Lockwood on a fourth-and-27 play for the game-winning touchdown.

- BRENDAN GALELLA, Times correspondent

[Last modified September 2, 2006, 06:38:38]