WEST PALM BEACH – King’s Academy (9-1) looks to prove its No. 1 seed ranking atop Class 3A Region 2 with a regional semifinal matchup at home against No. 5 seed Holy Trinity Episcopal (6-4) this Friday night.
The Lions, the No. 3 overall team in Class 3A, have had quite a while to prepare for this matchup as they have not played a game since October 26. Due to being a No. 1 seed, they earned a bye to the second round of the playoffs.
The Lions are looking to win their third straight game after their lone defeat of the season on October 12 against Gulliver Prep.
Holy Trinity, on the other end, is looking to build off of its momentum from last week’s win in the final seconds over No. 4 seed Cardinal Newman (8-3 final record).
Senior quarterback Dru Nickson sent a 30-yard hail mary pass into the end zone as time expired, securing the 34-30 win over Cardinal Newman.
Nickson was 17-30 passing with three touchdowns along with a season-high 302 yards in the win.
So far this season Nickson has thrown for over 1,700 yards along with 16 touchdowns. He has also contributed six rushing touchdowns, second most on the team.
Junior running back Latarious Hill picks up most of the carries in the backfield, leading the team with 141 on the season. He has turned those carries into a team high in both rushing yards (965) and rushing touchdowns (13).
King’s Academy is led by quarterback Justin Wake, who has thrown for 20 touchdowns all year, compared to just three interceptions. The senior has completed 106 of his 199 attempts for 1,619 yards, while also rushing for 494 yards and 10 touchdowns.
For Holy Trinity to win this matchup, it will have to hold King’s Academy to less than 22 points, something they have only done once this season in a 10-0 defeat to Merritt Island in their first game of the season.
Holy Trinity allows an average of 15.5 points per game. But in its four losses, that number jumps up almost 10 points to 24.25 points per game.
King’s Academy has only scored less than 24 points once all year, a 22-21 victory over Benjamin in its last game. The Lions average nearly 40 points per game.
The kickoff is set for Friday, Nov. 16 at 7:30 p.m.
