It didn't look like a conventional Poinciana victory at Tom Gannarelli Field in St. Cloud Friday.
Then again, nobody knew what that'd look like before Friday.
The Eagles got their first victory over the Bulldogs in 16 tries, with a 19-7 win that was called with 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter due to lightning and deteriorating weather conditions.
And, at 3-0 for the first time in school history, Poinciana is the only unbeaten team left in Osceola County after the Eagles beat the Bulldogs and Tohopekaliga lost to Hagerty Friday.
Poinciana quarterback Cameron Brown had another big night, throwing for 215 yards and a touchdown pass to Chase Frazier, and running for 119 yards and the other two scores to account for all three PHS scores. And the Eagles defense forced three turnovers, fumbles recovered by Jamel George and Ricardo Sanchez and an interception by Ernest Nunn that got Poinciana back the ball as the game was called due to the weather.
Poinciana Coach Taron Mallard said he can see his team playing with a big chip on its shoulder.
"These guys are tired of being left out of the conversation," he said. "Winning is a mentality we've preached and this kids now know what it is to be winners."
Nunn was a sophomore on a team that went 8-2 in 2022 and had a bowl game scheduled against St. Cloud wiped out by Hurricane Nicole.
"Coach Tay felt like we could compete with (St. Cloud) and we proved it, so this feels really good," he said. "We made some plays on offense, and we've got a good defense."
The night included two lightning delays -- the first pushed kickoff back about 20 minutes, the second ended the game early -- a lighting delay and a stoppage for a serious leg injury to a St. Cloud offensive lineman.
Poinciana took a 7-0 lead with a minute left in the first quarter when Brown hit Chance Frazier on a 27-yard touchdown pass. Five minutes into the second quarter, with the Bulldogs on the cusp of a score at the 1-yard line, three-quarters of the stadium lights went out, forcing a 16-minute delay. Two plays after the lights came back on, Bulldogs QB Logan King executed a perfect 1-yard play-action pass to tight end Owen Sullivan to tie the score. St. Cloud’s defensive line gang tackled Eagles running back at the goal line on 4th-and-2 at the 9-yard-line with 37 seconds left to keep it tied going to the half.
The Eagles made all the plays the rest of the way. Brown passed for 52 yards to Javonte Simpson-Lee, then three plays later called his own number from 27 yards out to give the Eagles a 13-7 lead. Two drives later, it nearly read the same: Brown hit Simpson-Lee for 39 yards, then on the next snap Brown kept the ball, broke two tackles behind the line and escaped for a 19-yard scoring run. The two-point conversion failed and the Eagles lead 19-7 with 51 seconds left in the third quarter. A roughing the kicker call on fourth down kept the drive alive.
Nunn started the fourth quarter with his interception, and not long after, the weather force school officials and coaches to call the game rather than wait deep into the night to finish.
In the third quarter, Bulldogs offensive tackle Aaden Tellado went down with a serious leg injury, and was transported from the field to the hospital.
The Eagles play their first home game next week against Evans, who face Orlando power Jones on Saturday; St. Cloud will play the 101st installment of the fifth-longest rivalry in Florida against Osceola at home.
