Sabby Meassick's 26-yard touchdown pass to Tre Punter with 5:32 remaining gave Tohopekaliga (3-2) the lead for good in a 14-9 win over Harmony, a key win in the District 7A-10 race.
Up until then, it looked like the defensive and special teams effort of Harmony (1-4) would be enough to beat the Tigers for the third time in what's become an intriguing rivalry. Brayden Buehler's third field goal of the game, a 22-yarder, gave Harmony a 9-7 lead. The Longhorns defense had forced four turnovers up to that point, a pair of fumble recoveries and interceptions, and were making junior Tiger quarterback Sabby Meassick uncomfortable.
"The kids gave effort all night," THS Coach Anthony Paradiso said. "Sabby is back there trying to make things happen, but our offensive line played well, our defense got the stops we needed. And at the end of the day, we're 1-0 in the district with another chance to get better next week."
The Longhorns turned their first turnover, a Rylan Rogers interception, into points on Buehler's 30-yard field goal. Meassick, who was 21-of-52 passing for 211 yards, used his legs on the Tigers' next drive, picking up 15 yards on a third-down scramble, then bootlegging for a nine-yard touchdown run to put Toho up 7-3. Harmony, despite driving to the 1-yard line on its next series, couldn't punch it in and had to settle for another Buehler field goal to make it 7-6 at the half.
Colton Sklarek recovered a fumble and Aidan Sanchez had an interception early in the fourth quarter but they didn't turn into points, but when Buehler dropped a punt at the 2-yard line, then the defense forced a punt from the end zone, the Longhorns got the ball at the Tiger 32. They moved to the 5 and on 4th-and-1 HHS Coach Nick Lippert chose the points and Buehler banged home his third kick to give Harmony the lead with 6:54 remaining.
Passes to Punter for 13 yards and Emanuel Theagene for 31 got Toho into Harmony territory, where a fourth-down pass interference call on fourth down kept the drive alive. That set up Meassick's winning pass, and after Caleb Massey intercepted Harmony's Landon Hayes, the Tigers looked to put it away, but Sklarek recovered another fumble in the end zone to give the Longhorns one last chance. But the Tigers ushered Harmony off the field in four more plays to earn the win.
"This is tough. The kids know we have to find a way to finish," said HHS Coach Nick Lippert. "We've got to come away with more than field goals when we get in the red zone (inside the 20). But on defense, we made them uncomfortable."
Harmony will regroup during its bye week next week, while Tohopekaliga celebrates Homecoming against Lake Brantley.
Gateway 24, Liberty 0: it's the Panthers' third shutout. Joshua Fuller and Nydrell Thigpen combined for 261 yards rushing in Gateway's (3-3) win.
Fuller, playing in just his third game after missing pre-season camp and the team’s first three games with injury, had a season-high 147 yards on just 10 carries. Thigpen, Gateway’s standout freshman, added 122 yards on 22 totes. It was his third 100-yard rushing game of the season. Kicker Nick Alves accounted for the other points on a 23-yard field goal.
“It’s a lot more fun when you win,” Gateway coach Marlin Roberts said after the game. “We don’t have many seniors or juniors playing but those on the current team have not won many games the last couple of years, so this is a new experience for them.”
The Panthers took advantage of solid field position all night. On their first two scoring drives, they started on the Liberty 37 after short punt and on the Charger 27 after a Isaiah Noel interception –capping both drives with touchdown runs by Thigpen and Fuller. Leading 14-0 at half, an errant snap on a Liberty punt gave Gateway the ball on the Charger 35. This time the Liberty defense held and the Panthers had to settle for Alves’ field goal. A fumble on the ensuing series set the Panthers up for Fuller to break loose for his second TD on a 45-yard run.
While the Panther running game was clicking, its defense was equally impressive. Gateway recorded two quarterback sacks, five other tackles for loss, two interceptions and a fumble recovery. Gateway has allowed just 14 points in the last four games.
“I’m pretty sure they didn’t even notice we had a shutout and even if they did, they were would have still been way more excited about the win,” the Roberts said. “But I am super proud of the players; it doesn’t matter who you are playing, it’s hard to shut
anyone out.”
Both teams play at home next Friday night with the Chargers hosting Celebration; while Gateway takes on St. Cloud. “I’ve known Mike (St. Cloud coach Mike Short) a long time and I know he loves to throw the ball around,” Roberts added. “It will be a big challenge for us. We’re playing a lot of young kids and they have a ton of seniors.”
