By: Ross Van De Griek
LAKELAND, Fla.- It was a battle between two top 10 ranked teams in their respective classifications on Friday night at Victory Field on Friday night. Berkeley Prep (5-1) came in at #2 in Class 3A, according to MaxPreps.com & Victory Christian (6-0) came in at #1 in Class 2A, according to MaxPreps.com
Berkeley Prep also came into tonight's matchup ranked #16 in the national small school rankings, according to MaxPreps.com
"We were going to expect a defensive battle the whole night", Victory Christian head football coach Kendrick Stewart said following the game.
Berkeley Prep wasted no time, as on the first possession of the game marched down the field for an 11 play, 74 yard drive & chewing nearly seven and a half minutes off the clock, resulted in a 5 yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Travis Bates. Victory Christian quickly responded with a touchdown of their own, on a 5 yard pass from senior quarterback Jeremiah Byrd to freshman wide receiver Preston Smith. However, the Storm would miss the point after, so Berkeley held a 7-6 lead heading into the second quarter.
Berkeley Prep would drive down the field once again, but had to settle for a 29 yard field goal by Brooks Johnson, that gave the Bucs a 10-6 lead with 8:11 left in the first half. On the ensuing kickoff, Victory Christian senior kick returner Keyshawn Covington would take the kick 77 yards for the score, to give the Storm their first lead of the night at 13-10. Neither team would score for the rest of the first half, as Victory Christian took a 13-10 lead heading into the locker room.
The third quarter was a battle of trading punts, as neither team could get any drives going. Neither team scored in the third quarter, as the game remained 13-10 Victory Christian heading into the final quarter of play.
In the fourth quarter, Berkeley Prep's Brooks Johnson would tie the game on a 28 yard field goal, to tie the game at 13-13 with 7:43 left to play. Later in the fourth quarter, Victory Christian would take advantage of having great field position as they started their drive at their own 40, with 1:40 left to play. "I felt like the momentum was starting to turn into our direction following the punt return by Smith", Victory Christian senior quarterback Jeremiah Byrd said. Freshman wide receiver Preston Smith would get the Storm inside Berkeley Prep territory on a 20 yard reception from Byrd. With :22 left to play, senior quarterback Jeremiah Byrd set up a game-winning touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Keyshawn Covington to re-gain a 19-13 lead. Victory Christian would hold on for the 19-13 win & improve to 6-0 on the season, while Berkeley Prep suffers their first loss of the season (5-1).
Despite the loss, Berkeley Prep held Victory Christian to just 165 yards of offense. "We just needed to execute better & not give up the big plays", Berkeley Prep head coach Dominick Ciao said.
The road ahead for Berkeley Prep: 10/11 vs Oasis (6-0)
The road ahead for Victory Christian: 10/11 vs Cardinal Mooney (5-1)