Preps

PHU 37, Clearwater 24

By MARC VALLIN, Times Correspondent
Published October 20, 2007

From the start of the contest between Palm Harbor University and Clearwater, the Hurricanes played with furor that had not been seen until this week in the season. Palm Harbor set the tone on the opening drive controlled by running back Dajaun Bush's 17 yard reception and 22 yard run. The eight-play opening drive went 80 yards and included five first downs and Bush's 3 yard touchdown run.

Palm Harbor would score four more times in the first half, twice on runs and twice on passes. Both rushing touchdowns came from Bush who ran for 145 yards in the game. The first touchdown reception was a 16 yard pass from quarterback Sean Shelton to receiver Jordan Jones. The second was from Shelton to tight end Kevin Dickinson. The first half closed with the Hurricanes dominating time of possession and the Tornadoes scoreless.

"We played our hearts out. We were ready to come out strong this week and take the win home for homecoming," said Bush. "We practiced so hard the whole week: defense, defense, defense. Stopping the run, making sure everything would go down perfect, and we wound up stopping them real big and everything was good tonight."

Hampered by three turnovers and 40 penalty yards in the first half, Clearwater was not able to gain momentum until they battled back in the second half. The Tornadoes scored in the third quarter on a 1 yard run by running back Brett Bostick. In the fourth quarter, the Clearwater defense capitalized on a fumble in the end zone and quarterback Nick Gimbrone threw a 44 yard scoring pass to receiver Malcolm Grigley. Though the momentum began to shift in the Tornadoes' favor, their second half rally would prove to come up short.

PHU coach Pete Just said, "Clearwater had some turnovers early and that helped us out. Our kids thought that if they played well, they would have a chance. They defended the pass and run well, and obviously, they're a pretty good offense. We're pretty proud of our kids tonight."

[Last modified October 20, 2007, 01:27:48]