Seahawks advance to rematch with Gators
It was a line casually delivered from one Cape Coral teammate to another, but it could have been a warning to defenses that come in close contact with Seahawks quarterback Dylan Bontrager.
“If he gets time, he gets touchdowns.”
The frenetic senior used his offensive line in some cases, and his own two legs in others. to buy just enough extra moments to sling four touchdown passes that led Cape High to a 37-21 defeat of DeSoto County in the Region 5A-4 quarterfinal playoffs in Arcadia Friday night.
The victory provides the Seahawks (9-2) with opportunity for both a rematch and revenge, in the form of a semifinal round game with city rival Island Coast next Friday on the Gators’ field. Island Coast was a 35-7 winner over Sarasota’s Booker in its quarterfinal game, and defeated Cape 23-3 on Oct. 2 during the regular season at Dave Warkentin Stadium.
A few Seahawks players exited the field Friday already doing a Gator chomp that was quickly followed by a dismissive wave of the arms. Bontrager wasn’t nearly so demonstrative, but he did concede to relishing the chance to erase the taste of a six-interception effort the last time around.
“It’s a good feeling for me. I’m chomping at the bit to get to that game,” he said. “I can’t wait for this week of practice. I know it’s going to be intense. I can’t wait to get there.”
Still, while Cape never trailed Friday, advancement wasn’t always a forgone conclusion.
The Seahawks punted twice and lost a fumble on their first three possessions against a stout defense that had surrendered single-digit points in six of eight victories. Cape High managed precisely one first down in those initial three tries and Bontrager accounted for all of minus-1 yard on a pair of completions across his first four pass attempts.
A bounced snap resulted in another lost yard to begin the team’s fourth drive, before what instantly became an emphatic, and decisive, sign of life.
Whirlwind wide receiver Rasheen Bailey got a step on a defensive back and Bontrager hit him along the left sideline for a 76-yard scoring play with 78 seconds remaining in the opening quarter. Not only did the TD end the offensive drought, Seahawks coach Larry Gary said, it calmed the nerves, too.
“When you score, it does settle people down and they realize that we’re capable,” he said. “When you give him time, he’s going to get you. That’s what he did.”
The Seahawks added a field goal on a subsequent possession and took a 10-0 lead into intermission, but the margin was quickly pared when DeSoto County’s Dawayne Hearns ran the second half’s opening kickoff back 73 yards for a score that made it 10-7. The teams then exchanged touchdowns – Cape on a Bontrager-to-Keashawn McCoy pass, the Bulldogs on a Hearns run – to make it 17-14, before three Seahawks plays over a five-minute stretch early in the fourth quarter hastened the rematch chatter.
Kevin Moreland galloped 90 yards with the kickoff after Hearns’ second TD to make it 24-14, then Bontrager found Bailey with a 78-yard strike and hit Lucious Stanley from 16 yards away to stretch the edge to 37-14 with 5:38 remaining.
DeSoto got within two scores after Tajahs Jackson cruised in on a 23-yard run with 3:49 to play, but the Seahawks made a fourth-down stop on the hosts’ final possession and executed two kneel-downs to provide Gary with his first playoff coaching victory.
“If we cut back on turnovers, foolish penalties and big plays, we’ve got a chance,” he said. “We’ve got a chance against anybody.”
Cape Coral7 3 7 20 – 37
DeSoto Co0 0 7 14 – 21
CC – Bailey 76 pass from Bontrager (Stone kick)
CC – FG, Stone, 20
DC – Hearns 73 kickoff return (Barajas kick)
CC – McCoy 18 pass from Bontrager (Stone kick)
DC – Hearns 6 run (Barajas kick)
CC – Moreland 90 kickoff return (Stone kick)
CC – Bailey 78 pass from Bontrager (Stone kick)
CC – Stanley 16 pass from Bontrager (kick failed)
DC – Jackson 23 run (Barajas kick)