LP reaches milestone win

There were plenty of tears flowing down the faces of many of the seniors on the Lake Placid football team as they gathered with their teammates one final time after Friday night's 41-6 rout of Lemon Bay at Roger Scarborough Memorial Field.

The end of the season and their high school careers was at hand, but this group of young men became leaders and helped the Green Dragons accomplish something that hasn't been done since 1998 - finish with a winning record.

"It means a lot to help turn this program around," said senior fullback Navahri Holden. "We bonded in summer camp, became a team and the chemistry we had was something special.

"We played hard and believed in each other and like Coach Holden says, we are all one dragon."

The dominating win over the Class 3A Manta Rays (3-7) helped the Class 2B Green Dragons finish with a 6-4 overall record and 3-2 in District 6.

"We've known this was a great group of guys since last year," said Coach Holden. "It was just a matter of if we could get some real leadership out of them. We knew this was the kind of season we could have and we got it.

"This is only the fourth time since 1972 that this program has had a winning record and I'm so proud of these guys because they were able to accomplish something that hasn't been done in a long time."

Lemon Bay took the opening kickoff, picked up a first down and punted.

Lake Placid took over at its 47, and behind the strong running of Holden and tailback Caleb Jones, marched down the field with Jones scoring from 2 yards out.

The swarming Lake Placid defense, which had four sacks, forced the Manta Rays to punt again and the Dragons took over in great field position at the Lemon Bay 43. Junior quarterback Kirk Veley led LP on a nine-play drive, with Jones hammering in from a yard out for a 14-0 lead with 9:28 remaining in the second quarter.

After an exchange of punts, Lake Placid took over at its 20 and proceeded to pound Lemon Bay with its potent ground game as Holden went up the middle and Jones cruised around the Manta Rays' tiring defense. Jones, who finished with 21 carries for 143 yards, scored on a 14-yard scamper around left end to give the Dragons a commanding 21-0 halftime lead.

"We were the smaller team, but our offensive line kept grinding away and we were able to hit the seams of the Lemon Bay defense," said Coach Holden. "Caleb is a very patient runner and does a great job of setting up his blocks, but when he finds that seam he has that burst of speed that makes him dangerous. Navahri is a hard-nosed player and has been a leader and cornerstone of this team for the past two years."

Making sure there wasn't any letdown, Lake Placid came out for the second half with plenty of intensity and scored on its opening possession as Holden broke free through the heart of the weary Manta Ray defense for a 32-yard touchdown.

Holden finished with 13 carries for 66 yards, and the versatile athlete intercepted a pass to set up another Green Dragons score.

"He isn't flashy, but he makes all the plays," Coach Holden said.

For Navahri Holden, it was a night and season to remember.

"I'm so happy to finish my high school career with a game like this that I don't want to take my jersey off," said Holden. "When I come back for my 10-year reunion we'll be talking about this night and the season we put together."

Lake Placid surprised Lemon Bay on its next possession as Veley, who completed 5 of 10 passes for 118 yards, hooked up with junior wide receiver Devontra Flemming for an 84-yard touchdown.

Flemming ran past the stunned Manta Ray secondary and Veley's pass hit him in stride down the left sideline for the easy score.

Junior running back Tony Gonzalez, who had nine tackles on the night on defense, capped the Lake Placid scoring with a 30-yard jaunt midway through the third quarter to put the Dragons up 41-0.

Lemon Bay averted the shutout when Andrew Schulte, who rushed for a team-high 96 yards, scored from 5 yards out with 18.8 seconds left in the game.

After the onside kick was recovered by Lake Placid, Veley took a knee to secure the win and, more importantly, a winning season.

"This was a special group of players that I hate to see go," said the second-year Green Dragons coach. "This is a close group of guys and we accomplished a lot of things this season because of the unity we had.

"That's what makes it harder to say goodbye."