Gibbons rips Clewiston, advances in Region 4
The Cardinal Gibbons offense was celebrating Troy Stellato’s second touchdown catch of the first quarter when Jertavis Black made his proclamation.
“They haven’t played nobody like us,” the Cardinal Gibbons senior defensive lineman bellowed from the sideline. “This is a walkthrough.”
Cardinal Gibbons was already up by three touchdowns against visiting Clewiston just 10 minutes into their Region 4-4A quarterfinal matchup. The offense had scored on each of its drives. The defense had forced a pair of three and outs, with the only positive yardage Clewiston mustered coming via a Cardinal Gibbons penalty.
The Chiefs would go up by 23 at halftime, pull most of their starters afterward and cruise to a 37-7 victory in their final home game of this abbreviated high school football season. Cardinal Gibbons (4-1) will face Gulliver Prep next week in the regional semifinals.
“Having a first-round opponent that we knew we could take care of, we did our thing on both sides of the ball,” quarterback Brody Palhegyi said. “We knew we were going to take care of business.”
It was the type of performance Cardinal Gibbons coach Matt DuBuc expects from his team, one eyeing a second state title in three years.
Restrictions put in place this year due to COVID-19, however, have made things difficult at times. They lost quality reps for their air raid offense over the summer, so timing has occasionally been off with passes. Practices are staggered and the locker room has basically been out of commission to comply with social distancing policies.
Friday, DuBuc said, was one of the Chiefs’ more complete efforts.
“We hope to be hitting our peak,” DuBuc said.
Palhegyi threw for 226 yards, three touchdowns and one interception and added a 15-yard rushing touchdown to give Cardinal Gibbons a 30-7 halftime advantage before handing over the offense to the second team. Stellato, a four-star receiver orally committed to Clemson, caught three passes for 86 yards and the two firstquarter touchdowns.
Clewiston’s lone touchdown came on a 79-yard catch and run in the waning seconds of the first quarter to avoid the shutout. The Tigers (5-2) punted on five of their final eight drives, with one of those punts being blocked and returned for a Gibbons touchdown to open the second half. A Hugo Silsby interception ended another and set Gibbons up for a six-play, 40-yard drive capped by Palhegyi’s 15-yard rushing touchdown to close scoring in the first half.
Region 4-4A quarterfinal — Gulliver Prep 46, Monsignor Pace 13: It was almost a year ago when Gulliver Prep had to gather in its locker room for an eerily silent team meeting following one of the most devastating losses anyone on the roster had ever been a part of. Gulliver, fresh off a unexpected perfect regular season, stunned Booker T. Washington in the second round of the 2019 playoffs by jumping out to a 14-point, only to lose in the final minutes to the eventual Class 4A champion.
Gabe Nealy called it “the most heartbreaking loss that I’ve ever been through.” The Raiders thought about it all summer. It still weighs on them as the 2020 postseason is underway. After a rout of Monsignor Pace on Friday, Gulliver is back into the Region 4-4A semifinal where its season ended a year ago.
The Raiders (5-0) gave up a touchdown on the Spartans’ first play from scrimmage, but otherwise dominated Monsignor Pace (1-4) at Spartan Stadium. Pace managed just 13 yards on 23 plays for the rest of the half, and Gulliver returned an interception for a touchdown, recorded a safety and recovered two Spartans fumbles all before halftime. The Raiders took a commanding 33-6 lead into halftime and led by at least 20 for the entire second half.
Quarterback Carson Haggard, a junior, threw two touchdowns. Two-way athlete Travious Lathan, another junior, caught one and wide receiver Jalen Brown, a sophomore, caught the other. Running back Sedrick Irvin Jr., another sophomore, led Gulliver with 121 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries.
A senior, however, set the tone Friday in Miami Gardens. Gulliver settled for a field goal on its first drive, then gave up an 80-yard touchdown run to running back Ean Pope on Monsignor Pace’s first offensive play. On their second drive, the Raiders picked up a couple first downs and then had to put from Spartan territory, pinning Pace at its own 3-yard line.
On the second play of the drive, Nealy picked off Spartans quarterback Adrian Posse and ran it back for a touchdown to put Gulliver ahead 10-6 despite a rocky start.
“We’ve got guys that can make big plays,” Raiders coach Earl Sims said. “We’ve got several guys that can make plays, so it’s certainly a blessing.”
Region 4-3A quarterfinal — Edison 54, Palm Beach Gardens Benjamin 14: A traffic jam was the only thing to slow down Edison on Friday.
The Red Raiders were late arriving to Traz Powell Stadium for its postseason opener in Miami, and it meant Edison started slow after missing out on warmups and its typical pregame routine. Still, the Red Raiders (3-1) were rolling by the end of the first half.
Nathaniel Joseph, Darius Chester and Livingston Benoit each scored two touchdowns.
Edison advances to the Region 3-4A semifinals and will host St. John Paul II Academy next Friday.
OTHER PLAYOFF GAMES
Region 4-7A play-in game — Homestead 25, Naples Gulf Coast 13: Adrian Harris, David Jester, Joseph Stevens and Daron Williams scored touchdowns for the Broncos, with Stevens returning an interception 80 yards for a score. Homestead will host Doral Academy in the Region 4-7A quarterfinals next Friday.
Region 3-6A play-in game — Fort Myers Dunbar 38, Belen Jesuit 0: Don Chaney Sr.’s first season as Belen Jesuit’s coach came to an end with a shutout loss. The Wolverines finish Chaney’s first season at .500.
Region 3-5A play-in game — Northwestern 28, Key West 20: Northwestern got a scare Friday in
Key West, but hung on to beat the Conchs to begin its quest for a fourth straight state championship. The Bulls fumbled late in the fourth quarter to give Key West a chance to drive and tie the game. Northwestern, however, came up with a final stop.
Region 3-5A play-in game — American Heritage 49, Melbourne Palm Bay 0: James Williams, who is orally committed to the Miami Hurricanes, blocked a punt in the Patriots’ blowout win. The Patriots host Northwestern next week for the regional quarterfinals.
Region 4-3A quarterfinal — Calvary Christian 50, Palm Glades Prep 6: Calvary Christian kept its perfect season intact with a blowout win on Friday in Fort Lauderdale.
Region 4-3A quarterfinal — Chaminade-Madonna 52, Somerset Academy Silver Palms 0: Chaminade-Madonna’s quest for a fourth straight state championship began Friday with a blowout win and will host Calvary Christian for the region semifinals.
Region 4-2A quarterfinal — Champagnat 42,
Naples First Baptist Academy 0: Through two rounds of the 2A playoffs, Champagnat has allowed seven total points and outscored opponents by 100 points. Champagnat goes back on the road for the Region 4-2A semifinals next Friday against Moore Haven.
Region 4-2A quarterfinal — Westminster Academy d. Miami Christian (forfeit): Westminster will host Community
School of Naples next Friday for the region semifinals.
REGULAR SEASON
St. Brendan (6-1) 47, Surge Academy 6: Damari Charlton was 10 for 15 and 163 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 44 yards and one touchdown. Isaac Brown had 123 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns. Richard Dandridge had 122 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns. Terrell Franklin had six tackles, and Christian Lowry had four tackles and one fumble recovery.
A Hialeah Gardens (2-1) 6, Westland (1-2) 2: Marvin Machado had 15 carries for 61 yards. Leo Labarta had a crucial 10-yard touchdown run. Defensive end Anthony Hernandez recorded two sacks, Machado, as a free safety, contributed with a fourth-quarter interception and a goal line tackle in the final seconds on a 4th-down stop at the 1-yard line.
A Palmer Trinity Falcons (4-2) 41, Marathon (0-5) 6: The Falcons were led by senior Jose Corbo with 305 yards on 16 attempts. Corbo also had 6 rushing touchdowns. Sophomores Santana Wooten and Matthew Ehrenreich had 5 tackles each. Senior Caleb Young had 5 tackles 1 tfl.