Lakeland Stuns Top-Seeded Aquinas in Overtime

Lakeland, the No. 5 seed, defeated No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas 27-24 in overtime on November 13, ending a run of recent losses to the Fort Lauderdale powerhouse and giving both teams a 1-0 record in Pool A. Lakeland had lost to Aquinas in the past two Class 5A championship games. The teams are 10-1 this season after the result.

The other Pool A game was a 35-0 victory for No. 4 Chaminade-Madonna over No. 8 Venice. Brady Quinn threw three touchdown passes, and Chaminade led 28-0 at halftime. Venice had several chances to score but was stopped, including on a fourth-down pass in the fourth quarter.

In Pool B, No. 2 Columbus beat No. 6 Miami Central 40-3. Columbus scored on an 82-yard pass and led 17-3 at the break, then kept Central out of the end zone after halftime. No. 3 West Boca Raton defeated No. 7 Raines 28-7, ending Raines’ unbeaten season and 24-game winning streak. West Boca quarterback Trey Moran threw two touchdown passes.

Each team has two pool games left. The top two finishers in each pool advance to the semifinals. On November 20, Aquinas visits Venice, Lakeland travels to Chaminade-Madonna, Columbus visits Raines, and Miami Central plays at West Boca. Lakeland and Chaminade lead Pool A after the opening games, while Columbus and West Boca are 1-0 in Pool B.