Holy Trinity dominates Foundation Academy in regional quarterfinal
· Yahoo Sports
MELBOURNE — Holy Trinity played its first FHSAA state playoff game in two years, returning after one SSAA season to compete in the newly created Independent League.
The top-seeded Tigers hosted No. 8 seed Foundation Academy in the Pool B South regional quarterfinals looking to win their first postseason game in five years.
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After they built a 17-6 halftime lead, Holy Trinity dominated the second half to win 45-6 for the school’s fourth-ever state playoff win.
“I thought the kids came out and played great. Defensively, we were just flying to the football making some pretty good plays,” Holy Trinity head coach Hurlie Brown said. “We stumbled a little bit, but it never affected the team. We just kept playing. That’s what you ask for. Just go out and play for 48 minutes. That’s what they did.”
The Tigers defense held an opponent to under 10 points for the sixth time in 10 games this season. They forced Foundation Academy into six punts and two interceptions. Foundation Academy ended the game with 145 total yards with its lone touchdown coming off a muffed punt.
“I got a really good defense. That’s what’s expected of them. I don’t expect anything different,” Brown said. “We let them get out of the pocket a little bit a couple times, but I thought they did exactly what we were asking them to do. They did a fantastic job.”
Holy Trinity senior Omari Savage put the exclamation mark on the win with interceptions on back-to-back defensive snaps off Lions backup quarterback John Elder.
Savage picked off Elder with Foundation Academy driving in Tigers territory. The senior returned the interception 78 yards to the end zone.
On the next Lions drive, Savage intercepted a pass over the middle of the field and returned it 28 yards to the Foundation Academy 13-yard line. That set up the final score of the night on a 13-yard touchdown run by freshman Michael Jackson.
“It felt good,” Savage said. “They finally threw the ball my way. I’m going to get it every time.”
The defensive front of Holy Trinity was disruptive all night. Freshman Jadiel Corbin recorded a pair of sacks and sophomore Jacorey Mills brought down Foundation Academy starting quarterback Micah Brinkley for one sack.
“We just feel safe,” Savage said. “We can just make sure we do our part and we know they’re going to do theirs.”
The Tigers offense squandered red zone chances on their first two drives as they had a field goal blocked followed by a 27-yard field goal by senior Roan Wright as time expired in the first quarter. However, they settled into the game and scored five touchdowns on their final seven possessions.
Holy Trinity sophomore Jackson Mobley completed 15-of-21 passes for 183 yards and three touchdowns. Mobley threw a 10-yard touchdown to junior Hayden Argo to make it 10-0 midway through the second quarter.
After a Foundation Academy touchdown with 49 seconds left in the first half, Mobley chucked a deep ball to junior Aaron Raines in the middle of the field. Raines hauled in the pass with one arm and shed a pair of Lions defensive backs for a 63-yard touchdown. The sophomore tossed a 20-yard touchdown pass to junior Zach Curran to make it 24-6 with 2:20 remaining in the third quarter.
Jackson and Mills combined for 141 rushing yards on 15 carries and two touchdowns. Mills broke the longest run of the game of 45 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
“I felt if we just kept playing, eventually it was going to come. That’s just football. They had a great game plan for us. They executed well,” Brown said. “We got a field goal blocked, but then we were able to get three points off the other one getting in the red zone. That’s something now we got to go back and look at and get it corrected and make sure that we don’t make those same mistakes again.”
Holy Trinity features a very young team with just 10 seniors. Despite their inexperience, the Tigers went 7-2 in the regular season and controlled their first playoff game from start to finish.
“We’ve had some ups and downs, but we get through it every time. It’s a real brotherhood here,” Savage said. “Being here since my sophomore year and now being a senior, just seeing the culture change and all that. I just feel proud.”
Holy Trinity returns to the field on Nov. 19 for the regional semifinals against the No. 5 seed Central Florida Christian Academy. CFCA defeated No. 4 seed Orangewood Christian 18-10 in its regional quarterfinal. The Tigers will look to make history and reach their first regional final.
“A win’s a win,” Savage said. “We just have to keep on going and just focus on the next one.”
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Holy Trinity dominates Foundation Academy in regional quarterfinal