Boone's Lucas Rawlings (Photo by Justin Kane)

Just 16 seconds remained when Rawlings withstood a ferocious rush from the West Seniors at the line of scrimmage and connected on the 32-yard game-winning field goal.

“It was very tense,” said Rawlings of lining up for the attempt. “I was just focused on getting my leg through it and getting the ball through the upright. That’s all I had on my mind.”

The tense part came when Rawlings was given a little extra time to think things over as he was held up by a timeout from the West sideline. Once the ball was snapped a fierce collision took place up front before the kick hit its mark with plenty room to spare, prompting the celebration to get underway.

“It was indescribable,” Rawlings said with a grin while reliving the moment. “I knew right there that it was the game winner.”

The field goal capped off a 13-play drive that began midway through the fourth quarter and drained the remaining five-plus minutes to virtually nothing. Oak Ridge quarterback Baylin Trujillo converted on fourth-and-two during the drive on a keeper up the middle while several others played key roles.

The East got big gains on the ground from Colonial’s Jermaine Broomfield and University’s Curtis Riley, along with a 23-yard pickup on a throw from Pine Castle’s Michael Slack to Orlando Lutheran tight end Faysal Shafaat down the stretch.

Boone's Lucas Rawlings (Photo by Justin Kane)

Slack finished 6-of-9 passing for 126 yards as he delivering precise passes that landed right on target while Broomfield tallied 52 yards on eight carries. Shafaat caught four balls for 66 yards, one of which he kept a hold of even after taking a jarring hit over the middle from an opposing player.

“He told me ‘Great throw. If you would of threw it any higher I would have gotten laid out even worse’,” said Slack of the good-natured encounter they shared in the huddle following the play.

It was Slack’s touchdown toss of 39 yards to Boone’s speedy Denard Lucas, while in stride with 3:27 remaining in the third quarter, that tied the game at 14-14 and breathed new life into an East squad that had little trouble moving the ball. If only they could have turned those yards into points by reaching the end zone earlier.

Lucas was eager to get the call though after already having told a teammate he was bound to score a touchdown. He did so two plays after hauling in a 42-yarder from Trujillo.

“The (defensive backs) were playing man (coverage) and they were trying to bump me, but it wasn’t happening,” said Lucas, who finished with three receptions for 94 yards in the win.

Boone's Lucas Rawlings (Photo by Justin Kane)

Those two scores in the second half by the East were set up by a stingy defensive effort, most notably from defensive lineman Jordan Little from Cypress Creek who was in on two sacks on third downs which resulted in punts the other way.

They came on drives where the West routinely found themselves working for room to run from deep in their own territory as they tried to hang on to a 14-7 lead after returning to the field from the halftime break.

Among the East defenders making it tough on the West were Joseph Jones and Andres Jurado of Cypress Creek, Ryan Moore and Sean Brown from Colonial, Conrad Walko and Josh Kerlin of Pine Castle, along with Timber Creek’s Jacob Wainwright and Winter Park’s Corey Gonslaves.

Those efforts proved to be beneficial after having watched Ocoee’s Chris DeVaughn jump on a Trujillo pass in the flats for an interception which he raced 72 yards along the sideline to paydirt less than three minutes into the night.

But the equalizer was set up when a fumble that Boone’s Tabarie Sullivan landed on in a pile of players was recovered following a muffed punt near midfield. Eleven plays later, which included a fourth-down conversation, the game was tied at 7-7 just a minute into the second period as Riley faked to a running back, swung around wide to the right, and sprinted his way into the end zone past defenders.

“When I took off towards the sideline I seen some people in front of me and I knew I had to put a move on them,” said Riley. He would finish with 53 yards on 10 carries and 29 yards passing nf 2-of-4 attempts.

The West Seniors promptly replied with their best drive of the game two series later. They took the lead with a minute left in the first half when Robbie Matay hooked up with Dr. Phillips teammate Greg Slones in the corner of the end zone from four yards out. Only the momentum wouldn’t carry over into the final two quarters.

In the loss, Dr. Phillips running back Matt Williams had five strong runs for 39 yards and Apopka’s Joe Dennis made big tackles on defense for the West. Other defensive standouts included Matt Hunt and Matt Lambert of Bishop Moore, Delroy Steele (Jones), Jarret Leppert (Apopka), Michael Lewis (Ocoee), Cornelious Sigler (West Orange) and Donnie Bartolomucci (Olympia).

Lake Highland –

The Highlanders turned two onside kicks into touchdowns in the third quarter to build a 35-19 lead Friday night. Those plays came after trailing 19-13 at the break. Lake Highland’s defense had to turn away a feisty fourth quarter push to help ensure a perfect start to the season.

- Senior QB Bobby Borcky – The leader of LHP’s option offense helped moved the ball along with quick decisions, several runs of nine yards or more, and a touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone in the opening quarter.

- Senior RB/DB Zack McCarrell – On the first play from scrimmage he took the handoff and sped 62 yards for a touchdown. He would go on to score again on runs of 70 and eight yards in the second half. He also pulled down an interception with a minute remaining to close the gate on Jones’ comeback. An open-field tackle he made in the final seconds of the first half proved to be a touchdown-saver.

- Senior LB/TE Jason Root – Put the ball on the ground twice but provided plenty of positives on both ends of the field. Defensively he clogged up the middle and made tackles in the backfield while also recovering a fumble and blocking an extra point in the second quarter. He remained active the entire night and managed to rumble for a gain of 36 yards on one of a handful of carries.

- Freshman RB/DB Mike Dorcely – Opened the game with two big kick returns before Jones abandoned the idea of kicking to him altogether. He played the entire game on defense manned up with a big senior target for Jones and came away from it no worse for the wear. In fact, he broke up several passes, pulled in a one-handed interception in the second quarter, and scored a touchdown in the third quarter on a run of nine yards.

- Freshman RB/LB BJ Simpson – Made big hits on the Jones quarterback for sacks; forced a fumble at the end of the first half and also found the end zone in the win. He recorded runs of 28 and 26 yards while crossing the goal line in the third quarter.

- More Lake Highland (2-0) contributors – Senior Cameron Uranick was in on tackles-for-loss; Sophomore Ty Law broke up a 2-point conversion pass in the end zone; Junior Cody Leiffer caught a pass for 20 yards, made a tackle-for-loss and recovered a fumble; Junior Eric Fernandez recorded a sack for a loss of seven yards; Freshman Landon Stokes recorded a sack of minus four yards; Senior Blake Castillo caught a pass for 13 yards and had several nice runs included one for 24 yards; Senior Tyler Kirkland caught an 11-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone by out jumping a defender in the first quarter.

Jones –

Try as they might, the Tigers fell short largely due to special teams. Yet even while trailing 42-25 in the fourth quarter they rallied back and gave themselves a shot at completing the comeback with more than a minute to go. The trouble for them began with having an extra point blocked in the second quarter. The visiting team was successful on just one of four two-point conversion attempts from that point on.

- Junior QB Angelo Warner – Did everything in his power to put the ball in the hands of his receivers, even if they had trouble holding on for the reception when the pass was on its mark. He took some tough shots by defenders, one in particular on the team’s opening possession. But on that play he was rewarded for it once his pass found it’s way into the end zone.

- Senior WR/FS Stacy Robinson – Might be too good for his own good. Had a tough start to the game, as he seemed to outrun most passes, resulting in too many battles while having to come back for the ball. Although he lost several of those matchups he did shake off his defender for a 91-yard touchdown reception and another big catch of 44-yards that set up a 1-yard touchdown run. Defensively, he used his speed to get in the backfield where he was in on two sacks.

- Senior RB Travis Jones – Showed off his field vision Friday night with some nice runs. Most notable was the 27-yard touchdown he scored by following a smashing lead block by sophomore Joshua Bembery with 5:16 left in second quarter. The score gave Jones the lead, 19-14, at the halftime break.

- Senior WR/RB Raysean Brown – Lined up in the Wildcat formation on offense throughout the night and mainly made his presence felt in the second half. He routinely picked up big gains while on the run (and even catching a pass) and scored twice in the fourth quarter on runs of 12 and three yards.

- More Jones (1-1) contributors – Freshman Levonte Whitfield caught a 38-yard touchdown pass and had another reception of 42 yards; Senior Dante Rogers was on quarterback sacks of minus-three and five yards; Junior Steven Michel was in on a sack of minus-five yards; Junior Lex Edwards caught passes of 13 and 23 yards; Senior LeNorris Lamoute scored on a 1-yard touchdown run; Senior Fillimore Wynter recorded a sack.

– More Lake Highland Prep vs. Jones coverage:

Game story at Orlando Sentinel

Player videos and program info at LHP Athletics

Video interview with Jones WR Robinson at WFTV 9