VERO BEACH — St. Ed’s was shutdown 28-0 by First Baptist Academy in the regular season opener at Pirate Stadium on Friday night and Head Coach Bill Motta did not mince words in summarizing the performance of his squad.
“I think it stinks,” Motta said in his no-nonsense style.
There is not much more to add if clarity is to prevail. The offense continued to struggle coming off shutout defeats in the spring game and preseason classic. The defense gave up yardage in huge chunks and seemed vulnerable to both the run and pass.
The visitors from Naples tried to help the Pirates cause by fumbling the ball away twice in the first period.
Quarterback Johnny Schwerer and receiver Brain Carter just missed connecting on a long touchdown pass that would have given St. Ed’s an early edge 2 minutes into the game. The offense was otherwise dormant as they were forced into punting situations four times in the opening frame.
The Lions explosive offense finally struck on a 66-yard bomb from Tyler Dean to Kamron Chapman as time was about to expire in the first. The visitors would also find the end zone on their next two possessions.
Two runs and a pass ate up 63-yards to set up a 3-yard quarterback keeper for one score. A 16-yard completion to a wide open Joseph Sparacio in the middle of the end zone gave First Baptist Academy a 22-0 cushion at halftime.
The futility of the Pirates offense was encapsulated in the second half. They went three-and-out in their only two chances in the third period. St. Ed’s then turned the ball over twice in their only two possessions of the final 12 minutes.
A 14-yard touchdown sprint by Christian Rodriguez at the 11:16 mark of the final period capped off the night for First Baptist Academy.
“We lost to a very good team,” Motta said. “They executed well and we didn’t. We had success at times but we need to put it together consistently. I told the guys to hang in there. We’re still playing as individuals and not as a team.”
Relief may be in sight. St. Ed’s should be able to crack both the scoring and win columns next Friday night at home against New Generation Preparatory School.