Preps

Dunedin 35, East Lake 20

By CHRIS GIRANDOLA, Times Correspondent
Published October 20, 2007

EAST LAKE - Finish strong.

That was the motto for Dunedin entering Friday's game against East Lake.

After a 22-21 loss to Tarpon Springs last week in which they squandered a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter, the Falcons emphasized completing games.

They did just that in a key district matchup as they built a 28-13 halftime lead and held on for a 35-20 victory.

"We talked about playing a full 24 minutes (in both halves)," said Dunedin junior running back Darius Bellamy, who had 268 yards on 21 carries. "We went into that quarter (against Tarpon Springs) kind of flat, and we weren't about to let it happen again."

Bellamy helped give the Falcons an early lead with touchdown runs of 45, 58 and 76 yards on three of his first four carries.

"When he's in a zone like that, it's similar to the way Michael Jordan was," Dunedin coach Mark Everett said. "You just give him the ball and let him go to work. And in the fourth quarter, it was a huge gut check, and he helped us do what we couldn't do last week."

Dunedin, playing with mostly backups, turned the ball over on its own 35-yard line in the fourth quarter. Three plays later, East Lake quarterback Blake Robles found Nick Franz in the corner of the end zone.

After the extra point, the Eagles trailed 28-20, and it seemed the Falcons might be setting themselves up for another collapse.

But they gave the ball to Bellamy on their next series with a little more than six minutes left in the game. He had runs of 12, 10, 2, 14 and 19 yards and almost scored on the last run, falling 2 yards short of the goal line.

With the game securely in hand, Bellamy gave way to senior halfback John Toston, who scored on the next play with less than a minute left.

The victory keeps Dunedin (6-2, 3-0) in first place in Class 5A, District 9.

Dunedin 35 East Lake 20

[Last modified October 20, 2007, 00:51:06]