St. Augustine Throttles Gainesville

The Gainesville Hurricanes were shut out 56-0 Friday night by the St. Augustine Yellow Jackets on senior night at Citizens Field.

Quick St. Augustine Start

Gainesville (1-8) began the game with the ball, but the Yellow Jackets defense quickly forced a three-and-out.

With possession of the ball, St. Augustine (7-0) wasted no time. On its first offensive play of the game, quarterback Locklan Hewlett completed a 34-yard pass to receiver Myles Simmons. Two plays later, running back Devonte Lyons rushed for a 15-yard touchdown, giving St. Augustine a 7-0 lead.

With Gainesville looking to respond, the St. Augustine defense had other thoughts in mind. After forcing another three-and-out, the Yellow Jackets blocked the Gainesville punt. They started their next drive at the Gainesville 3-yard line.

Without wasting time, Lyons rushed for his second touchdown from the 3 to make the score 14-0.

St. Augustine take an early 7-0 led over @1900Canesville in the 1st quarter. The 3 yard rushing touchdown was scored by #6 Lyons. pic.twitter.com/L2nLDAPIGB

— Alexander Vafeas (@AlexanderVafeas) October 20, 2023

To end the first quarter, after a Gainesville drive was stopped, St. Augustine capped another drive with a touchdown. This time the score came off a Hewlett pass to receiver Trenton Jones for 39 yards, giving St. Augustine a 21-0 lead.

A 39 yard pass from #11 Hewlett to #1 Jones puts St. Augustine up 21-0. The #Hurricanes will look to get their offense going as we enter the 2nd quarter. pic.twitter.com/gsOvvAZwkM

— Alexander Vafeas (@AlexanderVafeas) October 20, 2023

Continued Domination

Both St. Augustine and Gainesville had only two more drives before the half, with the previous performance continuing. St. Augustine suffocated each of Gainesville’s attempts with interceptions by cornerbacks Marquice King and Jimmie Wheeler.

St. Augustine put together seven and four play drives that each resulted in touchdowns before halftime. Hewlett rushed for a 1-yard score and running back Trendell Anderson added another from 24 yards.

St. Augustine entered the second half with a 35-0 lead. The second half saw much of the same St. Augustine success.

Senior Night and Looking Forward

GHS coach Ian Scott explained how proud he is of his seniors.

He also detailed that the coming bye week will help his team get their “minds fresh and hopefully get some recovery for [their] bodies.”

Linebacker Caleb Young Jr. also spoke on what the Gainesville team is looking to do in preparation for its final game of the season.

Gainesville will face Eastside (5-3) on Nov. 3, looking to improve to 2-8.