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Bulldogs Bury Mistake-Prone Devils

DESOTO FORCES 9 TURNOVERS TO CRUISE TO DISTRICT VICTORY

Mark Pinson/Highlands Today

DeSoto's Antonio Washington 2 can't hang on to this long pass as a pair of Avon Park defenders close in during the thrid quarter of Friday night's game at Joe Franza Stadium.

By Mark Pinson | Highlands Today

Published: November 1, 2008

AVON PARK - Winning two games in a row had Avon Park feeling confident heading into Friday night's Class 3A-District 12 matchup against defending champion DeSoto.

Maybe too confident.

DeSoto tailback Marcus Shaw rushed for 163 yards on 26 carries and a swarming defense forced six fumbles and three interceptions as the Bulldogs routed the Red Devils 41-0 at Joe Franza Stadium.

"You're not going to win many games turning the ball over nine times," said Avon Park first-year coach Andy Bonjokian. "We came out thinking we were better than we are and DeSoto smacked us in the mouth.

"They jumped on us early and we never recovered."

Things went wrong quickly for the home team, as tailback Teddy Allen was hit hard and his fumble was recovered by the Bulldogs at the Red Devil 35.

DeSoto, which improved to 6-2, 3-0, took just six plays to capitalize, as Shaw scored from a yard out, and the point-after by Sammy Barajas made it 7-0 just four minutes into the game.

Quarterback Albert Moses fumbled on Avon Park's next possession and DeSoto linebacker Greg Summers picked up the loose ball and rumbled 34 yards for a touchdown.

The extra point by Danny Gonzalez gave the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead with 7:40 remaining in the first period.

"We couldn't hang on to the ball and we gave DeSoto great field position with our turnovers," said Bonjokian. "We kept our defense on the field way too long tonight and they did they best they could against a good offensive team."

Avon Park's Allen, who rushed for a team-high 87 yards on 15 carries, found some holes in the Bulldog defense, but not with any consistency.

"We're a better football team than we showed tonight," the Red Devil coach said. "We didn't execute, didn't have any fire and really stunk up the joint."

DeSoto took control of the game midway though the second quarter with a 12-play, 91-yard drive, capped off by Shaw's 11-yard sweep around left end.

The extra point gave the Bulldogs a commanding 21-0 halftime lead.

The Avon Park defense, which recovered two fumbles on the night, forced DeSoto to punt on its first possession of the second half and had great field position at the Bulldog 46.

Any thoughts of a Red Devil rally were quickly squelched, as Moses fumbled and DeSoto defensive end Tony Jones jumped on the loose ball.

The Bulldogs marched 65 yards in four plays with Shaw scoring from 12 yards out.

Gonzalez added the extra point to give DeSoto a 28-0 lead with 3:54 remaining in the third period.

Avon Park, which dropped to 2-6, 0-3, mounted a pair of drives in the fourth quarter, but both were stopped by interceptions.

Moses completed 3 of 11 passes for 33 yards with three interceptions under heavy pressure.

Bulldog tailback Cameron McQuay scored on a 41-yard run and then returned an Allen fumble 41 yards for a score midway through the final period for the final points of the game.

"We were moving the ball pretty well, but four turnovers in the first half and five in the second just killed us," Bonjokian said. "We have to hang on to the ball and make better decisions.

"We've got two games left in the season and we'll see what kind of character this team has and if they can bounce back and play with some pride."

Avon Park hosts archrival Sebring next Friday night and with both squads out of the playoff hunt, pride and county bragging rights are all that's on the line.

"We've got our work cut out for us because Sebring is an explosive team with a lot of speed," Bonjokian said. "We've got to focus and work hard in practice on our execution.

"We better come ready to play because if we show up with the kind of effort we had tonight, Sebring will run all over us."

Mark Pinson can be reached at 863-386-5837 or mpinson@highlandstoday.com

DeSoto 41, Avon Park 0

Friday at Avon Park

DeSoto 14 7 7 13 - 41

Avon Park 0 0 0 0 - 0

SCORING SUMMARY

First Quarter

DeSoto – Shaw 20 yd run (Barajas kick) 7:58

DeSoto – Summers 34 yd fumble return (Gonzalez kick) 7:40

Second Quarter

DeSoto – Shaw 11 yd run )Barajas kick) 1:04