After last Friday’s blowout over Cardinal Gibbons, the Patriots traveled down the street to play the Western Wildcats. Despite the rocky start, the Patriots were able to pull out the win, 28-14.
Western (ranked #25 in Florida) came ready to play against Heritage (ranked #5 in Florida). They took the board first with a touchdown right off the bat, making the score 7-0.
Heritage took some time to recover from this early trail, but they came back – slowly but surely. This began with two field goals to make the score 7-6, Western’s lead.
Ever heard the motto “defense wins championships?” This game proved the motto to be true, as defense took the reins in controlling not only Western’s offense (obviously) but also the scoreboard. Junior cornerback Gregory Thomas turned the momentum around early on with a defensive interception, powering the offense, while senior offensive lineman Omar Thornton knocked down passes all night.
However, “player of the game” award would have to go to senior cornerback Xavier Lucas, who truly turned the game around with two interceptions and a pick six. His impressive scoring play brought the score to 12-7, followed by a successful two-point conversion to make it 14-7 – kicking off Heritage’s lead.
With defense killing it, offense shifted their gears into “win mode” as well. Running head-first into the Wildcat defensive pack, junior running back Byron Louis reached the end zone to make the score 20-14. Junior running back Deandre Desinor flew past four Wildcats defenders to solidify the score of 28-14 with nine minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
This win brings Heritage to a 4-1 record going into the homecoming week-eve. Catch the Patriots at home next Friday, Oct. 13, against the Stranahan Mighty Dragons.
All photos and videos taken by Zoe Horwitz.
