But the Crusaders’ defense forced a timely fumble, shifting momentum back to their offense and eventually turned back Dunbar 29-13 in the opening round of the Class 2B playoffs.
With the win, Tampa Catholic (9-1) advances to host Orlando Lake Highland Prep in the 2B region finals.
Tampa Catholic’s offense got standout performances from quarterback Christian Green, running back Henry McCloud and wide receiver D.J. Williams, but its defense made the difference.
The Crusaders’ defense held Dunbar (7-4), which was averaging almost four touchdowns a game, to just 97 yards of offense. Tampa Catholic forced four Dunbar fumbles and intercepted two passes.
Tampa Catholic built a 19-7 lead late in the second quarter before Dunbar’s Tyrell Johnson returned a kickoff 97 yards to cut the margin to 19-13 just before the half. Driving deep into Tampa Catholic territory a quarter later, the Crusaders forced the key fumble, recovered by lineman Taylor Timmons, to jumpstart the win.
After a 33-yard Mike Paleveda field goal early in the fourth quarter extended the Tampa Catholic lead, the Crusaders forced another fumble to get the ball right back. Minutes later, Green hooked up with Williams on a 55-yard scoring pass to cement the win.
Green finished the game with 117 yards and two touchdowns passing and another 88 yards and a touchdown rushing. McCloud added 71 yards rushing.
In Class 5A, Tampa Bay Tech got 290 yards of rushing offense in a 22-6 win against Tarpon Springs East Lake. University of Miami-bound running back Maurice Hagens led Tech with 112 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns.
Tampa Plant, meanwhile, started its Class 5A playoff run with a 59-14 win against Plant City. The Panthers, who won the Class 4A state title before moving up to 5A this season, scored 38 points in the first quarter en route to the blowout win.
Also, C.J. Bennett passed for 286 yards, ran for 98 yards and threw six touchdown passes to lead Tampa Alonso to a 47-37 win against Lithia Newsome. And Clearwater Countryside advances to the second round after running back Alton Taylor ran for 235 yards in a 17-7 win against Tampa Freedom.
And St. Petersburg defeated Venice 28-21 while St. Petersburg Gibbs lost Bradenton Manatee 52-15.
Meanwhile, in Class 4A, Largo pulled the upset, dominating Tampa Hillsborough in a 24-3 thumping. Largo freshman quarterback Juwan Brown threw two touchdown passes as the Largo defense overwhelmed the usually potent Hillsborough offense.
Seffner Armwood had its own scare but overcame a 9-7 fourth-quarter deficit to rally for a 22-9 win against Tampa Sickles.
Other 4A scores included Hudson falling to Gainesville 17-0 and Tarpon Springs pounding Ocala Lake Weir 54-20.
In the opening round of the Class 3A playoffs, Bernard Reedy produced 376 combined yards and scored three touchdowns to lead St. Petersburg Lakewood to a 36-25 win against Dade City Pasco.
And Tampa Jefferson got three touchdown passes from Quentin Williams in a 43-22 win against Land O’Lakes.
In Class 2A, Tampa Jesuit lost to Wauchula Hardee 49-21 while Tampa Robinson topped Arcadia DeSoto County 42-21. And in Class A, Tampa Berkeley Prep lost to Dixie County 35-21 and St. Petersburg Admiral Farragut lost to Sarasota Out-of-Door 41-17.
Second-round playoff pairings
Class 5A
Tampa Alonso (5-6) at Tampa Plant (9-1)
Clearwater Countryside (10-1) at Tampa Bay Tech (9-1)
St. Petersburg (10-1) at Bradenton Manatee (10-1)
Class 4A
Gainesville (10-1) at Tarpon Springs (9-2)
Seffner Armwood (11-1) at Largo (9-2)
Class 3A
St. Petersburg Lakewood (9-2) at Tampa Jefferson (10-1)
Class 2A
Wauchula Hardee (9-1) at Tampa Robinson (9-2)
Class 2B
Orlando Lake Highland Prep (10-1) at Tampa Catholic (9-1)
Tampa Plant makes it volleyball championship No. 4
No stranger to state championships, Tampa Plant’s volleyball squad owned the last three state championships in Class 5A. That streak is over now – but only because the Panthers have now captured the 6A state championship.
In their first season at the Class 6A level, Tampa Plant went 29-1, culminating the campaign with this week’s win in the state championship game against Winter Park. The Panthers won 3-1 (25-13, 22-25, 25-19, 25-13).
Plant was led by Maddie Martin (22 kills), Becca Howard (48 assists), Ali McCurdy (23 digs) and Leah Jordan (6 kills). Meanwhile, the Bay area had another title brought home as Tampa Berkeley Prep captured the Class 3A state championship.
Berkeley Prep swept Melbourne Holy Trinity 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) to punctuate a 29-3 season with the program’s 13th state championship. Also, Tampa Prep fell in the Class 2A state finals to Orlando First Academy. The Terrapins ended their season with the 25-18, 25-20, 25-15.
State golf tournament
St. Petersburg Northside Christian’s A.J. Newell came agonizingly close to a state individual title at the Class A state meet.
Newell, who shot a 70-72 – 142, tied Plantation American Heritage's Kyle Roig for the tournament lead.
But it was Roig who fired a birdied in their one-hole playoff to win the state championship. Still, Newell’s second-place finish helped Northside place second as a team, 13 strokes behind team winner American Heritage.
Eighth-grader Anna Newell shot 148 to tie for ninth place, while Michelle Butler (150 for 17th place) and Danielle Grace (163 for 34th place) also performed well. Also in Class A, Lutz Steinbrenner’s Alex Milan placed eighth among individuals after a +3 78-69 (147) performance. And Tampa Academy of Holy Names tied for ninth among teams with solid performances from Mariah Diaz (tied for 32) and Emmy Martin (35th).
Meanwhile, in girls Class 2A, Plant City Durant placed third as a team behind Madison Opfer’s fourth-place finish and Erika Wardzinski’s 18th-place finish. New Port Richey Mitchell was seventh after a 16th-place score from Megan VanEtten.
Among the boys, Clearwater Calvary Christian finished seventh in Class A, followed by St. Petersburg Northside Chrisitan’s eighth-place finish.
