PCHS offense burns Lennard, 56-28

The Lennard Longhorns kept Friday night’s game interesting through the third quarter, but Plant City’s offense was too much to handle in the end.

The Raiders picked up a 56-28 win at home highlighted by a five-touchdown performance from sophomore Mario Williams, four of which came through the air courtesy of quarterback Braxton Plunk, and three rushing scores from Zamir’ Knighten.

Williams opened up the scoring with 6:35 left in the first quarter, catching a 15-yard touchdown pass from Plunk right after Tyreke Harrison blocked a Lennard punt and Demije Hollins scooped it up at the Longhorns’ 15-yard line. 

Lennard had little trouble advancing the ball throughout the half thanks to the offensive line’s strong performance, which helped quarterback Jah’tavis Philpart put his team on the board with nine seconds left in the quarter with a rushing touchdown. Plant City blocked the point-after attempt to hang on to a 7-6 lead.

The Raiders’ next drive, which bled into the start of the second quarter, ended with a five-yard rushing touchdown from Knighten with 10:50 to go in the half. Lennard running back Tino Hunt brought the Longhorns within two points at the 7:54 mark, breaking off a 55-yard run up the middle to hit paydirt, but the Raiders snuffed out the two-point conversion attempt to hold a 14-12 lead. Williams wasted no time scoring again, returning the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown to put Plant City ahead, 21-12.

Hunt picked up another touchdown with 5:43 to go in the half and the Longhorns were able to complete the two-point conversion, cutting the Raiders’ lead down to one point — a 21-20 score. The PCHS offense kept chugging along and Knighten found the end zone again with 1:47 to go in the half, getting there on a 31-yard run. Not even a minute later, after a quick Lennard drive, Williams scored touchdown number three with a 43-yard catch to put Plant City up, 35-20, with just under a minute left.

The Longhorns got the ball with just over nine minutes left in the third quarter and drove to Plant City’s red zone, then punched in a touchdown on fourth down. Another successful two-point conversion cut Plant City’s lead to seven points, a 35-28 score, but it was the last time the Raiders had to worry about a close game.

Plant City got the ball back at the 6:32 mark and controlled the action the rest of the way, scoring 21 unanswered points. That started with Williams’ fourth touchdown, another receiving score, on that same drive. A.J. Joyce snagged an interception with 2:48 left in the quarter to get the ball back in Plant City’s possession, but the Raiders didn’t score again until the fourth quarter.

Knighten and Chris Wilson were workhorses for Plant City throughout the final quarter, picking up first down after first down and getting the Raiders in scoring position. Knighten’s third and final rushing touchdown, a run of around 15 yards, came with 9:29 left in the game and gave the Raiders a 49-28 lead. After Lennard’s next drive ended with a punt, Wilson and Knighten again kept the chains moving and set up the game’s final touchdown, another Plunk-to-Williams connection, with 5:04 to go. The Raiders’ defense kept stalling Lennard’s offense and helped Plant City get the ball back with enough time to run the clock dry.

Plant City now has a perfect 4-0 record (1-0 district) heading into next week’s game at East Bay.