LANTANA – Santaluces has been an underdog since its 0-2 start of the season with losses to No. 7 Seminole Ridge and No. 5 Forest Hill.
The Chiefs are now on a hot three-game winning streak after defeating West Boca Raton, John I. Leonard and most recently No. 6 Boca Raton in a 22-17 Thursday night thriller.
Boca Raton would come in hot with a 10-0 lead after scoring on a field goal and a touchdown pass from quarterback Michael Pratt to wideout Rashawn Faustine with 3:41 left in the second quarter.
The Chiefs would wake up with 45 seconds left in the second quarter and score on a run by Val Carnegie to make the game 10-6.
But the Bobcats (3-2) would strike fast right before halftime as Pratt and Faustine hooked up for their second touchdown of the night to put them up 17-6 at the half.
The second half would be all Chiefs, as they came out and scored late in the third quarter on a 28-yard touchdown run by Jahbari Hill to close the gap down to 17-12.
After a fumble by the Bobcats, the Chiefs offense marched down the field and capitalize on the turnover by scoring on a short run by Carnegie at the start of the fourth quarter.
With a two-point conversion that followed the score, Santaluces would go on to take a 20-17 lead.
Boca Raton would make another costly mistake midway through the fourth quarter, as Santaluces defensive back Jimmy Valcin intercepted a Boca pass to shift the momentum toward his team’s direction.
Santaluces defensive lineman Angerlyns Julceus would be the catalyst for his team’s defense in the fourth quarter, as he recorded a sack to force Boca Raton into a three-and-out with a little under three minutes left in the game.
Julceus would come up big again and sack Boca’s quarterback in the endzone for a safety to make the score 22-17 with five seconds left in the game.
Boca would try for a Hail Mary with three seconds left, but the Santaluces defense would hold on to secure the win.
The Chiefs improved their record to 3-2 overall and 2-0 in District 10-8A. They will try and make it four games in a row with a victory as they take on Lake Worth in Week 6.
Santaluces head coach Brian Coe would comment on the team’s victory.
“Our guys have come together and are believing in each other,” Coe said. “I’m the biggest fan of them and happy for them. The culture is changing, but we always want to be better.”
