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November 10, 2007-Patriots put perfect record on the line

Friday, 09 November 2007

The undefeated Pace Patriots will welcome the Navarre Raiders into Patriot Stadium Friday night in the first round of the Florida State High School football playoffs. The 10-0 Patriots wrapped up their 2007 regular season Friday night with a cake walk against Lake City Christian. Pace scored 44 points in the first half, and eight different players tacked on points as Coach Lindsey’s squad pounded out a 58-14 victory. Pace now heads into their playoff opener against the Raiders (7-3) who finished second in District 2-4A. The Raiders added their seventh win of the season Friday night with a 35-14 win at Gulf Breeze.

The Patriot offense wasted little time getting their high-scoring offense in gear against Navarre. Quarterback Aaron Munoz rolled off a 33-yard touchdown run 4 minutes left in the first quarter to stake Pace to an early 7-0 lead. Less than a minute later, running back Ari Johnson scampered 47 yards to paydirt to give Pace a 13-0 lead. And with just under 2 minutes left I the quarter, Pace scored again, this time on a pass play from Munoz to Tyler Hunt..Pace stretched their lead in the second quarter as Johnson scored again on a 20-yard run and Vinny Orlando scored on a 5-yard run to make it 33-0 before Navarre could get on the scoreboard. The Raiders finally scored with just over five minutes left in the first half on a pass play to cut the gap to 33-7, but Pace added two more TDs before the first half ended to take a 47-7 lead into the intermission.

In other are games, 9-2 Milton won their playoff opener on the road by shutting down Fort Walton Beach, 37-12. Quarterback Dustin Land threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to lead the Panthers. The win sets up a winnertake-all battle next Friday in Pace in the 4A regional semifinals.

The news wasn’t as good for Jay, however. The Royals (8-3) ended up on the short end of a 14-13 nail-biter in Mayo against Lafayette. All Pensacola teams playing Friday also saw their seasons come to a close. 5-A Pine Forest (6-5) lost to Jacksonville Bartram, 20-13; 2A Catholic (4-7) fell to Fort White 29-21; and 3A Pensacola High (8-3) fell to Godby.

(c)EscaRosa Press- Photo by Al Graham

Pace seemed to be on a mission Friday night to get as many people as possible into the end zone. The Patriots had 5 different players score touchdowns on the ground in the game, and three players reached paydirt on passes from quarterback Aaron Munoz. Even the defense got involved, sacking the Lake city quarterback in the end zone for a safety to start the third quarter.

In other area games, 8-2 Milton dropped a 24-6 decision on the road to Pine Forest (6-4). The loss does not hurt Milton’s playoff hopes, however, they’ll be on the road to start the playoffs next week, as will Pine Forest.Jay had a tough row to hoe against Baker, holding on for a 34-27 win in a game that was tied 21-21 at the half. The Royals will open their post season with a road game against Mayo. In other action, Pensacola High turned back Escambia, 38-13, and North Florida Christian blew out Catholic, 31-7Monday night games keep local teams primed for playoff run

The Pace Patriots kept their perfect season intact Monday night with a lop-sided victory on the road over the Crestview Bulldogs, 49-14. The Patriots used a total team effort to shut down the 3-6 Bulldogs, leading by 19 points in the second quarter and never looking back.

The win was the ninth of the season for Pace and it improved their state-wide Class 4A ranking to number 4. The Patriots will be home this Friday for a game against Lake City Christian Academy and then begin the state playoffs the following week with a home game against the Navarre Raiders (6-3).