Heartbreaker Keeps P.K. Yonge Football Winless
It was a dark and stormy night. The lightning that halted the game for nearly two hours was not a coincidence – it was an omen. A message from God that said, “Leave this wretched field while you can.” We should have listened.
Naples First Baptist Academy’s 21-14 win at P.K. Yonge on Friday started as one would expect from two teams that had a combined point differential of -227. The first 10 possessions went as follows: punt, punt, safety, fumble, punt, fumble, turnover on downs, punt, fumble, blocked field goal.
P.K. Yonge (0-4) completed its first pass with 3:30 left in the second quarter. The score was 2-0, the First Baptist Academy Lions (1-4) up.
The second completion of the game for the Blue Wave ended up being a beautiful 25-yard back shoulder throw for just their third touchdown of the year. A successful extra point extended the lead to 7-2.
Good fortune followed for P.K. Yonge on the following defensive series. A sack, a hurry and then an electric 40-yard pick-six brought the game to a halftime score of 14-2. First Baptist coach Jason Cauley even received a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for exploding at an official. Everything was coming up Blue Wave. Those 14 first-half points for P.K. Yonge were more points than it had scored all season.
Then, a lightning storm during the break delayed the start of the second half for more than an hour. During the stoppage, it rained … and rained. Parents and fans sought cover in the gymnasium as a torrential downpour struck Gainesville. Once the lightning passed and the game was cleared to resume, sloppy play was expected. What happened in the second half was way worse.
P.K. Yonge came out less than flat — the team seemed uninterested in playing the rest of the game. First Baptist Academy, on the other hand, entered the second half with a fire underneath them.
After a tug-of-war third quarter, First Baptist finally connected on an explosive play: a 50-yard bomb that cut P.K. Yonge’s lead to five with a little more than 10 minutes left in the game.
A three-and-out by the Blue Wave was answered with a 54-yard rushing touchdown by the Lions that featured a slew of missed tackles. Even after a failed two-point conversion, First Baptist had reclaimed the lead at 15-14.
After eight minutes of stalemate, P.K. Yonge had the ball on its own nine-yard line with 57 seconds left and no timeouts. Following back-to-back incompletions, a free Lions rusher jarred the ball loose, and the third Blue Wave fumble of the half was recovered in the end zone for a demoralizing First Baptist touchdown.
P.K. Yonge coach Willie Jackson was blunt, but optimistic after the game. When asked what things his team did well, Jackson said, “None. Horrible game. Didn’t play 48 minutes. I gotta do a better job coaching them up.
“Winning is a habit, but losing is a habit as well. We gotta learn how to win games, but [the team] is still young and we got a lot of football left.”
P.K. Yonge plays at undefeated Oak Hall (4-0) at 7 p.m. Friday.
Category: Football, High School Sports, PK Yonge High School
