SEBASTIAN — Nobody can blame Sebastian River for not wanting to kick the ball to speedy Isaih McCallister. His 96-yard return for a touchdown quickly doused a celebration by the Sharks that changed the momentum and strategy in the second half and led to an eventual 39-21 victory for Bayside in Friday’s non-district contest at Sharks Stadium.
After Sebastian River quarterback Sloan Drummonds faked a hand-off and sprinted 14 yards untouched for a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to whittle Bayside’s lead to 26-21 and Ignasio Severino kicked the extra point, the Sharks opted to try an onside kick.
That decision might have been influenced by McCallister’s kickoff return with 7 minutes, 59 seconds to play in the third quarter.
Drummonds, who completed 14 of 23 passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns, lofted a 25-yard scoring pass to Damian Strong with 8:15 to play in the third quarter. Severino kicked the extra point to give the Sharks a 14-13 advantage.
Just seconds later, McCallister fielded a strong kick by Severino at the Bayside 4-yard line and sprinted up the middle 97 yards for a touchdown. Austin Evarts’ two-point conversion pass fell incomplete as the Bears (2-0) regained the lead at 19-14.
“It was a huge play, definitely,” said Bayside first-year coach Jerrod Ackley. “We work real hard on special teams. We could have had the kickoff return earlier, but we weren’t patient enough. We were patient on our second wedge for the touchdown. Football is a three-pronged game — so many people ignore special teams.”
Sebastian River (1-2) then fumbled the ensuing kickoff to give Bayside the ball at the Sharks 22. Evarts threw a quick strike pass to Lucious McKay for a 9-yard gain on first down, but two incomplete passes sandwiched around a penalty left the Bears with a fourth-down-and-5 situation at the Sharks 17.
Evarts found McKay open on the left side and he broke one tackle to score a touchdown. McKay kicked the extra point as the Bears extended their lead to 26-14 with 6:27 to play in the third quarter.
“You can’t give away points on turnovers,” Sebastian River Coach Kevin Pettis said. “We had some breakdowns on our pass coverage once Deion (Jones, groin injury) got hurt. We got confused on our coverage. You just can’t do that against good teams or even mediocre teams. Bayside’s got a good team. I just felt there was a momentum swing after the kickoff and then a lapse on our pass coverage.”
The Sharks also were penalized 12 times for 119 yards.
“I don’t think we were intimidated by (their big defensive line), Pettis said. “But, I don’t know. It’s one of those deals where you just can’t make penalties. The big plays on special teams killed us, and that’s the mark of a young team. We have just five kids with varsity experience before this season and they need to put things together. Sooner or later, the light has got to come on. I feel like we let this one get away. . . . We do practice special teams.”
After Sebastian River whittled Bayside’s lead to 26-21 on Drummonds’ 14-yard scoring run, the Sharks opted to fool Bayside with an onside kick. The play was drawn up well as Severino’s short kick landed in some open space to his left, but Bayside’s Andrew Zima fell on the football and managed to retain possession as three Sharks fell on him in a fight for the ball at the Bayside 45.
Evarts threw a 14-yard pass on second down to Jesse Jones for a first down and, two plays later, Johnie Wainscott jogged over the middle uncovered, caught a short pass from Evarts and sprinted the next 30 yards past the Sharks’ defense to score on a 40-yard pass play.
McKay converted the extra point as the Bears extended their lead to 33-21.
“They packed the box (to stop the run) and Austin made some great reads and great calls,” Ackley said. “We had three different receivers catch touchdown passes.”
Sebastian River limited Bayside to 17 yards rushing on 19 carries. Evarts completed 13 of 22 passes for 213 yards and four touchdowns. McKay had four receptions for 97 yards and two touchdowns.
Bayside scored its final touchdown when Wainscott recovered a fumble by Severino and ran 13 yards for the score. Severino hesitated after receiving the snap from center on the attempted punt and appeared to think the play had been waved dead before the ball was knocked out of his grasp.
Drummonds, a junior, gave the Sharks a 7-0 lead when he threw a 9-yard scoring pass to Deion Jones in the left corner of the end zone. Severino kicked the extra point on the final play of the first quarter.
“I thought Sloan did a great job of throwing the football,” Pettis said.
Bayside tied the game with 6:26 to play in the second quarter as Evarts found McKay open on the left side for a 49-yard scoring pass. McKay then successfully kicked the PAT.
McAllister’s 39-yard punt return later gave the Bears enviable field position at the Sharks 40. Deion Jones broke up a deep pass intended for Bayside’s Jesse Jones on third-down-and-5, but a late hit on Evarts on the play led to a 15-yard penalty and first down for the Bears.
As Sebastian River struggled to regroup, Evarts found Joshua Tyson open over the middle for a 30-yard touchdown. McKay missed the extra point, but Bayside took the lead at 13-7.
Nick Cooper led Sebastian River with 83 yards rushing on 22 carries.
Next Friday, Sebastian River will host Viera in its Class 7A, District 12 opener.
“We’ll have to shore up our pass defense next week,” Pettis said. “Viera likes to throw the ball a lot.”
