Panthers grind up Tritons 20-6
Behind a strong ground game and an opportunistic defense Cypress Lake held on for a hard fought 20-6 victory over Mariner at Tony McKenna field Friday night.
Clifford Moore had 148 of the Panthers’ 252 rushing yards as the visitors controlled the line of scrimmage. The defense did not allow a single completion by the Tritons. The Panthers also recovered four fumbles.
Each team had opportunities early, and it appeared Mariner was going to set the tone. Chance Reiter took the first snap from scrimmage and rumbled for 33 yards to the Panthers’ 25. A couple of costly penalties pushed the Tritons in to a fourth-and-long with coach Travis Smith electing to leave his offense on the field. The gamble paid off as quarterback Cairo Jeunegens scrambled for 22 yards and a first down. The drive ended when a missed handoff was recovered by linebacker Tavaris Joseph.
The Panthers then had an opportunity and a steady diet of tailback Isaiah Thomas brought the ball to midfield. The Panthers had their difficulties holding onto the ball and the first quarter ended scoreless.
Following an exchange of punts, the Tritons were on the move again. A strong running game saw them move to the Panthers’ 14-yard line. Tritons runningback Tim Peters took the ball to the 1, but turned it over as two defenders stripped the ball. Cypress Lake then tried to get out from under the shadow of their own goalpost as consecutive runs by quarterback Trent Rogers moved the ball to the 7-yard line. Tailback Clifford Moore then broke free up the middle for a 93-yard touchdown. William Beemer added the kick and the Panthers had a 7-0 lead.
Following a Mariner punt, the Panthers offense took advantage of the big play. Cypress had the ball at its own 21 with only 30 seconds remaining in the second quarter. Following a couple of good blocks around the left side, sophomore tailback Yasir Abdullah broke free for a 54-yard gain. On the very next play Rogers found receiver Herbert Riggins in the front of the end zone for a 25-yard score. The Panthers went to halftime with the 14-0 lead.
Toward the end of the third-quarter Mariner was starting to put a drive together. On the opening play on the fourth, Jeunegens plunged in from the 1-yard line. The Tritons attempted a two-point conversion, but the play was blown up in the backfield and the score remained 14-6.
All hope seemed lost when the Tritons muffed a punt return and senior Brian Martin pounced on the loose ball. From there the Panthers tandem of Moore and Thomas marched down the field with Thomas going the final seven yards for the score. A poor snap nullified the extra-point attempt and the final score held up at 20-6.
Both teams will be on the road next week as Cypress Lake visits Cape Coral while Mariner makes the crosstown trip to North Fort Myers.