PALM BEACH CENTRAL GETS WIN IN 1ST HOME GAME SINCE SHOOTING
Students reflect on night of panic when gunfire rang out.
WELLINGTON — Getting a text message warning him of a school shooting wasn’t what Brian Rundel expected upon starting high school.
“I was with my friend at my house and my mom said there was a shooting at Palm Beach Central,” said Rundel, a 14-year-old freshman at the Wellington school. “The only thing I could think of was (hoping) that all my friends were OK.”
Rundel tried to keep his voice calm Friday night as he relived that terrifying Aug. 17 night, when thousands of people at the game ran in a panic seeking safety after shots rang out in the fourth quarter of a preseason game. Two men were shot and other people were injured in the hysteria. No arrests have been made.
On Friday night, Rundel and a crowd that filled about three-fourths of the bleachers returned to watch Central’s first home game of the regular season. There was no drama on the field, as the Broncos rolled to a 48-0 victory over Miami-Ferguson, and, thankfully, no drama off the field.
But what should have been a loud, packed home opener instead featured a melancholy mood.
After the shooting, Palm Beach County School District officials moved game start times for the county’s public schools to an hour earlier (6 p.m.) and bulked up security with a larger law-enforcement presence, metal detectors and stricter rules — including a no re-entry policy, no fans allowed in after halftime, and only clear bags allowed into the stadium.
Students are now required to wear ID badges any time they’re on campus. Rundel’s badge features a photo of a grinning student who, only days into his new life as a high schooler, already has been exposed to what some have called “the new normal.”
Last weekend, there was a fatal shooting at a high school game in Jacksonville. A 16-year-old boy has been arrested and faces a charge of second-degree murder and two charges of attempted murder.
“Whatever keeps us safe,” Rundel said of the new rules.
Rundel’s friend and fellow freshman, Evan Moss, said he felt more comfortable with the increased security.
“It was scary when it happened,” Moss said, “but it won’t happen again. Nothing’s coming in.”
On Thursday night, school police said they arrested a man who admitted to bringing a gun to the Palm Beach Lakes High football stadium. The 36-year-old suburban West Palm Beach man said he had a concealed weapons permit for his Glock 43 9mm semi pistol and forgot that it was illegal to possess a handgun on school property, according to a probable cause affidavit.
For 48 minutes Friday night, the Broncos certainly did their best to keep the focus on football, going into halftime with a 42-0 lead. Senior quarterback R.J. Douriet totaled three touchdowns in the first half, two on the ground, and the Broncos added scores on defense and special teams. Senior Gen’Tarius Oliver returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter, eluding multiple defenders.
Even with the clock running to start the second half, Central didn’t let up, scoring with only seconds left in the third quarter. Central finished its first win of the season with more than 500 yards of offense.
Coach Tino Ierulli said the team’s loss last week to Atlantic was “exactly what we needed.”
“We definitely needed this win,” Ierulli said. “Bouncing back from the tough loss against Atlantic — and for as sloppy as we played in that game, we only lost 14-0. So we gave ourselves some time to refocus, we had a big meeting on Monday . ... It doesn’t matter how much talent we have if we don’t work hard and dial in at practice.”
Central’s 14-0 loss to Atlantic last week was played on a Saturday afternoon for precautionary reasons, with some calling for the Broncos to indefinitely avoid Friday night games.
Senior offensive lineman Joey Villano dismissed that idea, praising his team for avoiding the outside noise.
“We don’t listen to any of that,” Villano said. “We just want to come out here and win.”