Palm Beach Central football muddies Vero Beach to retain perfect record

WELLINGTON — Palm Beach Central proved it's here for the long haul after defeating Vero Beach 28-21 on a stormy Friday night in the Region 2-8A semifinals.

The Broncos enjoyed a much-needed performance ahead of a showdown with the physical Treasure Coast Titans in next Friday's region championship.

Ahead of Thanksgiving, Palm Beach Central head coach Scottie Littles is taking the time to cherish another week with his players.

"Regardless of how the season plays out, we're not done," Littles said. "I don't care if you win by one. I don't care if you win by 30. I don't care if you're playing chess, checkers, or football, I'm trying to win and that's the mindset they've got."

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"I'm going to buy them breakfast Thursday morning when we're practicing and we're going to come out here Friday and give it everything we've got to try to do something that's never been done here before."

Here are three takeaways from the Broncos' rally to the win:

1. It's good to be King

Vero Beach trailed Palm Beach Central by one point at half after a blocked extra point and a 30+ yard touchdown pass from quarterback Ahmad Haston to wide receiver Javorian Wimberly.

Vero responded early in the third with a rushing touchdown from Quincy Rodgers and two-point completion by Maurice Smith.

However, King answered with a touchdown catch of more than 50 yards, almost immediately followed by a scoring run from Smith just two minutes before the end of the quarter.

Just seconds into the fourth quarter, King broke a 25-yard touchdown run to balance the score and Haston showed off his owl run game with an extra two points to tie Vero at 21.

With 6:54 to go, King rushed to score again – this time for 65 yards.

"It was unbelievable," King said, reflecting on his stellar performance in his first ever playoff run after transferring from Park Vista.

"He hasn't been here forever, but he's a Bronco forever," Littles said.

Give this man the game ball.

2. Slippery when wet

Strong winds and waves of heavy rain surging throughout the game created problems on both sides of the ball and allowed for a relatively even matchup between both teams.

Running backs continued to slip, balls fell through slick gloves, and passes were misfired against ill-timed gusts.

Palm Beach Central and Vero Beach came down to clock management and control of possession.

"As it turns out, they were able to make one more play than we were able to tonight," Indians coach Lenny Jankowski said.

Jankowski didn't find the weather to be any excuse for the turnovers that changed Vero's momentum in losing a 21-13 lead at the top of the fourth.

However, he said those type of mistakes are magnified in sloppy conditions like those of Friday evening.

"It was tough to get anything going offensively," Jankowski said, crediting the Broncos' speedy defense.

"You don't go undefeated and get to this stage of the playoffs in 8A football and not be talented."

3. Brickhouse Broncos

Even with cleats struggling to find their balance on a flooded field, the Broncos defense proved stout from quarter to quarter.

Before Palm Beach Central, Vero's offense averaged just over 40 points a game and only Treasure Coast held the Indians to three touchdowns before the Broncos.

Between called-back plays and issues moving chains, the defense's response to play smart in four-minute, two-minute, and Hail Mary situations were the difference for Central.

Senior Ben Moss and junior Justin Bostic commanded the trenches in critical drives where Vero could've taken the lead.

Bostic created a turnover that prevented Vero from taking the lead in the second half to a pick in the fourth quarter that kept the ball in Central's hands – and split being the team leader in interceptions with Ka'ron Young.

Littles credited much of the back end's success to Young, who doesn't necessarily record the most flashy plays, but often makes them possible.

"Bostic makes plays," Littles said, noting his versatility at outside backer, safety and corner. "But without Ka'Ron Young, it doesn't go."

However, the most impactful stop can be attributed to Moss, whose performance in the backfield kept the Indians from capitalizing to create a 14-point deficit at the end of the third.

Region Semifinal Scoreboard

Pahokee 38, Bradford 20

Cardinal Newman 42, Florida Christian 7

Benjamin 55, Naples-First Academy 24

Palm Beach Central 28, Vero Beach 21

Champagnat Catholic 35, Glades Day 7

Lakewood 27, Glades Central 12

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach Central stays unbeaten with muddy Vero Beach win