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Pace storms back in 2nd half as Patriots stun Jacksonville First Coast 22-19

The magic carpet ride continued Friday night for the Pace Patriots. The team rolled into Jacksonville along with a couple of thousand fans for a head-to-head showdown in the Florida High School Athletic Association regional finals.  The end result was a huge comeback win for Coach Mickey Lindsey’s squad that the team can only build upon as it continues its unbeaten quest for glory. Just two games stand in the way of that dream, a state semifinal clash with Ponte Verda Beach Nease (12-1) next week.   Nease upset previously unbeaten Seabreeze 23-13 Friday, to stay alive..

The Patriots got things started on the right foot against First Coast, taking a 7-0 lead in their first possession of the first quarter on a short run by Tyler Hunt. But First Coast came back with a couple of scoring drives of their own, the first coming on a 15-yard pass just before the opening quarter ended. Jacksonville increased their lead to 13-7 with a pair of field goals in the second quarter, and had the momentum going their way at intermission..First Coast scored again in the

third quarter, this time on a 15-yard pass play, but the attempt for a two-point conversion failed and First Coast led 19-7 near the end of the quarter. But the Patriots would not roll over. With less than a minute left in the quarter, running back  blasted into the end zone and Eric Martinez added the extra point to close the gap to 19-14..The Patriot defense rose to

challenge, holding back the Fist Coast offense in the final stanza, and when Johnson scored on another short run and added a two-point conversion, the Patriots has a 22-19 lead with 7 minutes left. From there, the Patriot defense took center stage, shutting down the potent Jacksonville offense and clinching a dramatic win for Pace

(c)cityofpace.com/Staff Reporter -Photo by Al Graham

Pace storms back in 2nd half (c)cityofpace.com/Staff Reporter -Photo by Al Graham

Varsity Cheerleaders Pace High Band Drumline (c)cityofpace.com/Staff Reporter -Photo by Al Graham