For the first time in 21 years, St. Cloud celebrated a victory in its annual battle with county rival Osceola. The Bulldogs, playing at home, won 18-15 over the Kowboys, who are ranked No. 8 in the Sentinel’s Coaches Super 16 Poll.
In even more dramatic games, No. 13 Lake Nona’s Taebor Williams caught a Hail Mary pass from Elijah Nickerson as timed expired to stun No. 5 Evans, 31-27; and No. 6 Bishop Moore went down in defeat to Rural Class state champion Hawthorne in overtime, 28-25.
Also on Friday night, No. 1 DeLand escaped Lake Wales with a 36-34 win, No. 2 Jones got shut out 27-0 in California against powerhouse Santa Margarita, No. 3 Edgewater rolled past Ocoee 34-6, No. 7 The First Academy put a running clock on Dr. Phillips 58-7, and No. 10 Oviedo lost to Titusville 24-22. No. 4 Lake Mary was idle and No. 9 West Orange beat Archbishop Hoban of Ohio 28-24 on Thursday.
Also of note, Windermere continued its streak, winning its 21st consecutive game by knocking off No. 14 Winter Park 29-26. East Ridge dumped South Lake 24-7 in a battle of Lake County rivals, and Lake Howell won its rivalry clash with Winter Springs 57-16.
Pictures: Lake Nona vs Evans Football
No. 13 Lake Nona d. No. 5 Evans, 31-27
Lake Nona rallied from a 15-point deficit, capping the comeback with a Hail Mary pass from Elijah Nickerson to Taebor Williams with no time left on the clock.
Nickerson lofted a 45-yard pass toward the end zone and two Evans players were there. It appeared that either might intercept the ball, but Williams ripped it away to score the game-winning touchdown.
“I just felt confident in my team’s abilities. I knew we had the potential and all the talent to get it done. We just had to keep fighting through that,” Nickerson said.
Nickerson was calm under pressure.
Lake Nona rallied from a 21-6 deficit to get within 21-19 with 5:45 left in the game. But on the ensuing kickoff, Evans’ Brian Dillard went 90 yards to score. The Trojans failed on a 2-point conversion attempt, making the score 27-19.
The teams exchanged possessions and then Nickerson engineered an 83-yard scoring drive — featuring a 48-yard pass to Jeremiah Allen — that put the ball at the 1-yard line. Nickerson punched it in. The 2-point conversion attempt failed again and Nona trailed 27-25 with 27 seconds remaining.
Lake Nona quarterback Elijah Nickerson throws against the Evans High defense Friday at Lake Nona. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
That’s when Williams became the man of the hour.
The sophomore safety, who, along with Nickerson, transferred from Winter Park, corralled a perfectly executed on-side kick by Drew Koller with 9 seconds remaining. Nickerson threw an incompletion on first down. With five seconds left, he threw to Williams in the end zone, and the receiver answered the prayer with the catch. Lake Nona players went wild, running onto the field to celebrate what might be the program’s most impressive win.
St. Cloud d. No 8 Osceola, 18-15
The last time the Bulldogs defeated Osceola on the field was in 2005 (not counting a 2010 forfeit win).
Khalil Davis returned an interception 58 yards for the game-winning touchdown in the third quarter.
St. Cloud’s Jayden Taylor opened the game with a 95-yard kickoff return TD, and the Bulldogs took a 12-0 lead in the second quarter after quarterback Jeremiah Lattier connected with Matt Blenman for a 19-yard touchdown.
Osceola rallied to take a 15-12 halftime lead. Jerry Cannaday scored on a kickoff return of his own, going 94 yards. Zylin Garrett had the other Kowboys’ score on a 12-yard run. He also converted the 2-point try.
Hawthorne d. No. 6 Bishop More, 28-25 (OT)
Hawthorne quarterback Jusiah Roundtree evaded an oncoming rush, to find Tarahjai Fleming in the middle of the field for a 17-yard touchdown pass in overtime. That denied Bishop Moore’s bid to give coach Matt Hedrick his 200th career win. Bishop Moore had a field goal blocked with six seconds remaining in regulation and could only manage a field goal in its four-down overtime possession.
“We made too many mistakes,” Hedrick said. “Against a really good team, you have to capitalize on opportunities and we just didn’t do that tonight. They made phenomenal plays.”
Bishop Moore had an uncharacteristic seven penalties for 75 yards and gave up a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown just before halftime. The Hornets also fumbled the ball on their opening drive when they were in scoring position.
Bishop Moore quarterback Blake McCullough threw for 195 yards, completing 18 of his 34 passes.
Windermere d. No. 14 Winter Park, 29-26
The Wolverines got three touchdown passes from Dean Monroe and extended their winning streak. Speedy Onix Vazquez caught two touchdown passes and two-way player Ben Ford had a touchdown catch and a game-sealing interception.
No. 1 DeLand d. Lake Wales, 35-34
DeLand had just enough offense to overcome its defense. Taihj Moore finished with 168 yards on 25 carries and three touchdowns. Little speedster Kaveon Jackson (5-foot-5, 160 pounds) had 11 carries for 147 yards and two TDs, including a 68-yard run to start the scoring. He also added a 60-yard reception on a flee-flicker that set up Moore’s third TD.
No. 3 Edgewater d. No. 14 Ocoee, 34-6
Sophomore running back Jahmari Hammond had a 71-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and the Eagles poured it on from there. Que Lewis had a 55-yard scoop-and-score fumble recovery and Torrey Scott had a 45-yard punt return for a touchdown. Defensive lineman Jamarcus Taner got in on the offense with a 3-yard TD plunge.
Freshman quarterback Deuce Woods, right, threw three touchdown passes as The First Academy cruised to a 58-7 victory over Dr. Phillips. (Hailey Steinberg/For the Sentinel)
No. 7 The First Academy d. No. 16 Dr. Phillips, 58-7
After quarterback Deuce Woods threw an interception on the first play from scrimmage, which led to a 7-0 lead for Dr. Phillips, TFA put up 58 straight points.
Running back Bryce Robb ran for two touchdowns in the first half. Hyquez Russell and Woods also added touchdowns on the ground. Woods threw for three touchdowns — one to Zachariah Jean-Bart for a 63-yard catch and run, a 35-yard bomb to Zion Siler, and a 21-yarder to Jaiziah Battle.
Santa Margarita (California) d. No. 2 Jones, 27-0
Jones, which traveled across the country, could not get anything going offensively against a team that is ranked No. 6 in the country by MaxPreps.
Jones had a strong showing defensively but could not completely bottle up the Santa Margarita offense. The Tigers trailed 14-0 at halftime. Quarterback Peyton Carroll threw two interceptions. Defensive back Ke’sean Williams had a pick.
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Titusville d. No. 10 Oviedo, 24-22
An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Oviedo with five seconds left moved Titusville into field-goal range and Calvin Jorgensen hit a 42-yard game-winner as time expired.
Johnnie Rollins had a kickoff return for a touchdown for Oviedo and Johnnie Cobbs and Camari Solomon had rushing touchdowns.
East Ridge d. No. 12 South Lake, 24-7
The Knights got rushing touchdowns from Bryan Neves Dos Santos, Lamar Garrison and Noah Russell in the rivalry win.
No, 15 Lake Brantley d. Hernando, 44-7
Standout junior quarterback Jackson Stecher was held out of the game with a foot injury, but backup Ezekiel French ran for two touchdowns, including a 45-yarder and the Patriots ran the ball for over 300 yards. Dmarion Simmons had a touchdown.
Lake Howell d. Winter Springs, 57-16
Quarterback Brycen Marbrey threw five touchdown passes, with Jaywon Funnyé catching three of them. Winter Springs quarterback Jake Lowery left the game with an injury when the Bears were trailing 28-16.
Wekiva d. Cypress Creek, 52-0
The state’s longest current losing streak reached 32 games.
Week 1 Results
Thursday’s Super 16 Scores
No. 9 West Orange 28, Archbishop Hoban (Ohio) 24
No. 11 Seminole 26, Mountain Vista (Colo.) 17
Thursday’s Other Scores
Heritage (Colo.) 38, East River 13
South Elgin (Illi.) 21, Oak Ridge 6
University (Orlando) 47, Magnolia (Calif.) 7
Friday’s Super 16 Scores
No. 1 DeLand 35, Lake Wales 34
Santa Margarita (Calif.) 27, No. 2 Jones 0
No. 3 Edgewater 34, Ocoee 6
No. 13 Lake Nona 31, No. 5 Evans 27
Hawthorne 28, No. 6 Bishop Moore 25 (OT)
No. 7 TFA 58, No. 16 Dr. Phillips 7
St. Cloud 18, No. 8 Osceola 15
Titusville 24, No. 10 Oviedo 22
East Ridge 24, No. 12 South Lake 7
Windermere 29, No. 14 Winter Park 26
No. 15 Lake Brantley 44, Hernando 7
Friday’s Other Scores
Boone 21, Apopka 7
CFCA 40, Trinity Prep 17
Olympia 59, Colonial 0
Wekiva 52, Cypress Creek 0
Eustis 40, Leesburg 22
Faith Christian at Tradition Prep
Cornerstone Charter 28, Foundation Academy 20
Lyman 16, Freedom 8
New Smyrna Beach 7, Hagerty 6 (game postponed, will resume Nov. 6)
Horizon 71, Lake Buena Vista 0
Harmony 61, Liberty 0
Deltona 21, Pine Ridge 0
Poinciana 47, Celebration 7
Innovation 24, Timber Creek 20
Palm Bay 41, Nova Lakes 7
Lake Highland Prep 20, St. Edwards 14
Lake Howell 57, Winter Springs 16
Lake Minneola 46, Mount Dora 20
The Master’s Academy 38, Master’s Academy (Vero) 22
Mount Dora Christian 49, NSU University 35
Orangewood Christian 62, Palm Beach Christian Prep 0
Dunnellon 35, Tavares 6
Astronaut 43, Tohopekaliga 39
Space Coast 43, Umatilla 7
University (Orange City) 35, Sebastian River 10
West Oaks 52, Taylor 0
Seffner Christian 62, Legacy Charter 0
Saturday’s Game
Geneva at Seven Rivers Christian, 6 p.m.
Friday’s 8-Man Games
Real Life Christian 36, City of Life Christian 0
First Academy-Leesburg 40, Lakeside Christian 34
Bradenton Christian 53, Orlando Christian Prep 0
OPEN DATE: Gateway, Lake Mary, Windermere Prep, Cornerstone Charter, Eastland Christian, Lake Mary Prep.
Chris Hays can be found on X.com @OS_ChrisHays. Chris Martucci, Jean Racine, Philip Rossman-Reich, and J. Daniel Pearson contributed to this report.