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Armwood Escapes Plant City Upset Bid

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By MATTHEW POSTINS, Tribune correspondent

Published: October 13, 2007

PLANT CITY - Plant City played as if it had upset on its mind Friday night.

And for most of the night the Raiders seemed one big play away from stealing a victory from Armwood. But the Hawks, the Tribune's No. 1 team, escaped with a 14-10 win to remain undefeated.

The Hawks (7-0) entered the game as the nation's No. 23 team, but by the end of the game Hawks coach Sean Callahan said his team had plenty of work to do.

'We had some early penalties nine for 60 yards in the first half and that kind of took us out of our flow,' Callahan said. 'Plant City played very well. We racked up a lot of yards, but we couldn't find the end zone.'

Armwood outgained Plant City 378-159 and had 62 offensive plays to the Raiders' 35. But all the game's scoring came in the first half.

That's because the Raiders' defense, when necessary, came up with a big stop. Plant City (4-3) set the tone for the contest by forcing two first-half turnovers, one of which led to a Jonathan Dupree field goal.

'Our defense got confidence as the night wore on because of those turnovers,' Plant City coach Kevin Kelley said.

The Raiders, the Tribune's No. 10 team, weren't in it for a moral victory.

'I can't say enough about our defense,' Kelley said. 'Our offense just didn't have good field position the entire second half.'

Armwood had a 14-10 lead at halftime, but went back to basics in the second half, Callahan said.

They ran the ball down the Raiders' throats, pounding away with Eric Smith, who finished with 148 yards, and Rashyied Melvin, who gained most of his 45 yards in the second half.

But the Hawks couldn't score, despite controlling the clock and driving inside Plant City's 17-yard line three times. The Hawks went out on downs twice, including a terrific stand by the Raiders on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with 8:10 to play. Linebacker Denzel Drone led the charge, as he did most of the night.

But the byproduct of Armwood's struggle to score became terrible field position for the Raiders. Plant City started its first three drives of the second half on its 13, 10 and 1. But the second drive probably sealed Armwood's win.

Plant City had stripped Smith at the Raider 10, and the resulting turnover was the Hawks' third of the game. The Raiders had the ball at their own 10 with 10:46 left in the game and momentum on their side.

But two plays later Plant City quarterback Clint Stearns and his center mishandled the exchange, resulting in a turnover. Armwood didn't score and the Raiders probably missed their best chance to score on that drive.

Sirchauncey Holloway, who scored Plant City's only touchdown on a 45-yard romp in the first half, rushed for 130 yards on 15 carries. He accounted for all but 29 of the Raiders' net yards.

PC-FG Dupree 24

A-Cross 4 pass from Jackson (Skiffington kick)

PC-Holloway 45 run (Dupree kick)

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