West Boca Raton, FL- What a game!
Tonight (August 22), the #5 Benjamin Buccaneers traveled down to Paradise to face the #2 West Boca Raton Bulls in a matchup that’ll be reminisced about for years to come. As I previously reported this morning, both squads hold serious firepower, and the bazookas were on full display.
After a relatively light first quarter, filled with three-and-outs and defensive fortitude, Benjamin opened up the scoreboard first with a long touchdown rush from Phoenix Donghia in the final seconds of the quarter.
Benjamin cracks the scoreboard first as Phoenix Donghia breaks off a HUGE RUN
— New Era Prep (@EraPrep) August 22, 2024
7-0 TBS
:43 1st pic.twitter.com/PlFWWgGQSn
A few moments later, the Bucs’ drove down the field again, setting up another Phoenix rushing score. The following PAT was missed (Key detail to note for later)
Phoenix Dhongia with his second TD rush of the evening!
— New Era Prep (@EraPrep) August 22, 2024
13-0 TBS
4:00 2nd pic.twitter.com/cDwFmGDwX8
Benjamin carried all momentum throughout the first half. Offensively, West Boca couldn’t get much going. Bulls’ star RB, Javian Mallory, held a limited snap count over the first 24 minutes of play. As the horn blared, signaling halftime, West Boca entered the locker room with a 13-0 deficit on their heads.
Coming out of the intermission, something was in the air at West Boca. The vibe seemed calm, as the Bulls remained calm and collected throughout warmups. It was almost like this was the plan.
As the second half began, the tide began to turn. West Boca’s elite front seven was causing problems, disrupting plays on both the run and passing attack. Throughout the third, Xavier Reid and Demetrius Geathers were racking in TFL’s like halloween candy.
Then, the real Javian Mallory entered the game.
Towards the tail end of the third quarter, West Boca led a drive that tallied five rushes, three for large chunk gains. Mallory was electric, breaking off big rush after big rush. As the Bulls stampeded towards the end zone, who else would punch in the opening TD of the regular season than Javian Mallory.
After a strong drive led by multiple big rushes, Javian Mallory punches in a 3 yard TD, cutting Benjamin’s lead over West Boca 13-7
— New Era Prep (@EraPrep) August 23, 2024
1:20 3rd pic.twitter.com/CcrpeX7ycI
After another strong defensive stronghold, West Boca got right back in the end zone from another big run by Mallory.
Remember that missed PAT from earlier? Well now we’ve got a tie game (13-13), with under 2 and a half minutes remaining. John Farfan’s kick is up…..AND GOOD. West Boca gains the lead with 2:19 remaining.
WEST BOCA TAKES THE LEAD WITH ANOTHER JAVIAN MALLORY TD
— New Era Prep (@EraPrep) August 23, 2024
14-13 WB
2:19 4th pic.twitter.com/9IEQefeamh
After a beautiful kickoff pits Benjamin inside their twenty, West Boca’s defense holds strong once again. On a crucial fourth down, with the game on the line, the dynamic brotherhood duo of Xavier and Maxwell Reid break through the trenches and knock down the game winning sack.
Reid on Reid game winner‼️
— New Era Prep (@EraPrep) August 23, 2024
West Boca Stars Xavier Reid and Maxwell Reid combined for the game winning sack pic.twitter.com/az8RJ8BTX8
As the offense trots onto the field, Javian Mallory pounds the rock twice more, chewing the clock securing a West Boca W.
Analysis
West Boca did a great job at keeping their stars fresh. As the game drew on, Javian Mallory was as healthy as an ox, allowing him to break off electric runs late in the game. The Bulls also did a great job at rotating their signal callers, dependent on scheme. Both Mason Mallory and Trey Moran had nice performances tonight at the QB position.
What’s next?
Next week, the red hot West Boca Bulls will travel to Palm Beach Central for a highly anticipated matchup on Thursday, August 29. Kickoff is slated for 6:30 P.M.
The Benjamin Buccaneers will return home to host the Jesuit Tigers for their home opener. That game is slated for August 30, kickoff at 7:00 P.M.
