Friday's final:
Fleming Island 35, Orange Park 31
The Fleming Island Golden Eagle High School football team has a very strong chin.
The Orange Park Raiders’ (1-7, 0-2 District 3-5A) offense struck early and often during the first half Friday night at Fleming Island, but the Golden Eagles (4-4, 2-0) overcame a 24-6 halftime deficit and defeated the Raiders for the first time in school history, 35-31.
The win clinched the first playoff berth in Fleming Island's 5-year history.
This was the fifth meeting between the two teams and the Golden Eagles’ historical win almost sailed wide left. A field goal attempt by Golden Eagle kicker Nate Branz would have tied the game at 31 with just under two minutes left in the game, but it missed the uprights. The Raiders defense and the Orange Park sideline erupted as the ball settled in the grass with the
thought that they had taken away the Golden Eagles’ last chance at victory.
The euphoria was short-lived when everyone noticed the yellow flag on the field near the kicker. The Raiders were penalized for roughing the kicker, and the Golden Eagles got the ball back at the Raider 16-yard line with a new set of downs. While the Raider sideline was fuming about the call, the Golden Eagles set their sights on the end zone.
Golden Eagle sophomore running back Montory Bellamy ran for 7 and 5 yards, respectively, to move his team to the 4-yard line and a first-and-goal. Head Coach Neal Chipoletti left the outcome of the game in the able hands of his offensive line and senior quarterback, Ryan Aplin. With 94 yards on 14 carries, Aplin was qualified to run the ball at such a pivotal time.
He sealed the victory for the Golden Eagles with a quarterback sneak from the 1-yard line. Branz’s extra point finished the comeback from a 24-point deficit that Chipoletti knew his team could pull off.
“One thing I know about our kids is that they’ll fight to the final whistle,” Chipoletti said. “And I knew if we could withstand their first surge, we’d have a chance to win.”
Even though the outcome of the game was affected by a penalty, Chipoletti didn’t think it was any less of a win.
“When you’re down 24-6 at half and you’ve experienced the calls that have gone against us in the past, I don’t feel this win is tainted,” Chipoletti said. “We were just due.”
This victory may be a sign of things to come as the Golden Eagles relied on a youth movement to get back into the game. Orange Park owned the first half behind a 16-yard touchdown run by junior Kirhy Smith in the first quarter, which was set up by a 61-yard kickoff return by senior Deron Talley. Raider senior Chris Wiggins kicked a 21-yard field goal, senior Carlos Jefferson ran for a 16-yard touchdown and Kam Fasnacht dove in from the 1-yard line for the Raiders’ third touchdown.
With less than 30 seconds left in the first half, Aplin connected with freshman Austin Sweatt for a
15-yard touchdown pass near the right front pylon. Sweatt finished with 4 catches for 77 yards. “He really came alive in this game,” Aplin said of the freshman receiver. “He was a little nervous at first, but he has caught everything thrown his way.”
The Golden Eagles kept the Raiders out of the end zone in the third quarter and Bellamy pounded his way into the end zone from 8 and 35 yards out, respectively. The Golden Eagle sophomore ran for 115 yards on six carries.
Fleming Island junior Salmon Williams ran the conversion in after Bellamy’s second touchdown to pull the Eagles to within three points at 24-21. Fleming Island took its first lead of the game, 28-24, with about eight minutes left on a 26-yard touchdown run by Williams.
With Deron Talley on crutches and C.J. Stallworth returning to the field after suffering a contusion to his left leg in the first half, the Raiders put together a drive in the fourth quarter. Albrey Felder caught a 48-yard pass from Fasnacht to get Orange Park into Fleming Island territory. Two more 10-yard passes set up the Raiders at the Golden Eagles 20-yard line. Junior running back Carlos Jefferson caught a Fasnacht pass in the middle of the field and broke free from a defenders grasp for a 20-yard touchdown run.
“They made adjustments at the half and shut down our outside stuff,” said Ken Fasnacht Jr., Orange Park Assistant Coach. “This is tough. You come out and finally make the plays to get on top and then it’s taken away from you.”
The Raiders regained the lead at 31-28, but Aplin’s 1-yard dive ended Orange Park’s bid for a second win.
“The offensive line was amazing,” Aplin said. “They stepped it up huge in the second half.
Stepping up is something the Golden Eagles will have to do again after a week off. The Golden Eagles will take a three-game winning streak to Gainesville on Nov. 2 for a showdown with the
Buchholz Bobcats. The Bobcats defeated the Gainesville Hurricanes, 24-20, Friday.
Orange Park is also on a bye next week. The Raiders will return with a trip to Gainesville High
School (0-6, 0-2 District 3-5A) for a chance to get out of the district cellar on Nov. 1.
Scoring Summary
Orange Park 7 17 0 7- 31
Fleming Island 0 6 15 14- 35
First Quarter
OP- Smith 16-yard run(Wiggins kick) 7-0
Second Quarter
OP- Wiggins 21-yard field goal 10-0
OP- Jefferson 16-yard run (Wiggins kick) 17-0
OP- Fasnacht 1-yard run(Wiggins kick) 24-0
FI- Sweatt 15-yard pass from Aplin(kick blocked) 24-6
Third Quarter
FI- Bellamy 8-yard run(Branz kick) 24-13
FI- Bellamy 35-yard run(S. Williams run) 24-21
Fourth Quarter
FI- S. Williams 26-run(Branz kick) 24-28
OP- Jefferson 20-yard pass from Fasnacht(Wiggins kick)
31-28
FI- Aplin 1-yard run(Branz kick) 31-35