Raiders use familiar foe as their steppingstone into 7A semifinals

FORT LAUDERDALE — St. Thomas Aquinas and Venice are on opposite sides of the state, but in each of the last five years the teams have squared off against each other in the playoffs. The winner of three of the last four meetings has won the Class 7A state championship.

In Rematch No. 4, the Raiders came out ahead. St. Thomas scored twice on offense, once on defense and once on special teams to roll to a 29-8 victory over Venice in the Class 7A regional finals in Fort Lauderdale on Friday.

“It’s a familiar face, and we kind of look at it from a logistical standpoint,” St. Thomas coach Roger Harriott said. “We’re not really focused too much on the actual team. We want to make sure we put our guys in the best position possible to execute and not get so caught up in the emotional aspect.”

The Raiders got off to a hot start. Junior running back Anthony Hankerson scored a pair of firsthalf touchdowns (one from 2 yards out and another from 12 yards) to put St. Thomas up 15-0.

The Raiders went into halftime up 22-0 after five-star defensive end Dallas Turner, an Alabama commit, blocked a punt, scooped up the loose ball and fell into the end zone.

“I told one of the DB coaches I was going to block the punt, and I did,” Turner said. “I didn’t know I was going to score until he fumbled when he fell on it.

“I didn’t even know I was that close to the end zone, so I just caught it and dove in.”

The Venice offense consistently challenged the Raiders, who entered the game having surrendered only 74 points in their first six games. Venice quarterback Colin Blazek completed 26 of 58 passes for 248 yards in an offense that had a quick tempo.

“At first, it’s heaven,” said Turner, who was frequently in the Venice backfield. “At first, I really liked it ... until he started throwing the ball out real fast.”

But the Raiders defense gave Venice fits. Venice scored one touchdown on a 6-yard pass from Blazek to tight end Weston Wolff late in the third quarter, but that’s all the Raiders surrendered.

St. Thomas intercepted a pair of passes, including a 102-yard picksix by safety Isaiah Taylor.

“It felt like a real turning point,” Turner said. “It just shows how good our defense really is in the red zone, of course.

“That just shows how much heart we play with, especially in tough situations.”

Now that it has beaten Venice for the fourth time in five years, St. Thomas advances to the state semifinals to face undefeated Valrico Bloomingdale.

“All of us [need to] come together as one — one team, one heartbeat,” Turner said. “Just come together and buckle down, work hard and do what we do.”

MICHAEL LAUGHLIN/SUN SENTINEL PHOTOS St. Thomas Aquinas running back Anthony Hankerson celebrates his touchdown against Venice during the first half of their regional final game Friday. Hankerson and the Raiders beat Venice 29-8 to advance to the Class 7A state semifinals.

St. Thomas Aquinas receiver Quincy Skinner tries to catch a touchdown pass in front of Venice safety Elliot Washington during the first half Friday.

St. Thomas Aquinas lineman Dallas Turner recovers the ball and falls into the end zone for a touchdown after blocking the punt of Venice’s Merek Houston during the first half of the teams’ Class 7Aplayoff game Friday night.