DELRAY BEACH — For the second consecutive season, Atlantic High School’s football season ended in heartbreaking fashion.
The No. 2 seeded Eagles, which trailed at halftime by 17 points, saw a second-half rally fall just short and fell to No. 3 McArthur 17-16 in the Region 4-5A semifinals on No. 21.
A year ago, Atlantic got out to a big lead against perennial national power St. Thomas Aquinas before the Raiders forced overtime and pulled off the dramatic comeback.
This time, Atlantic was the one trying to make a big comeback.
The Eagles (10-2) appeared to score the game-tying touchdown on Mark Hanniford’s second touchdown run of the game in the fourth quarter, but McArthur blocked the ensuing extra point attempt.
“That’s extremely frustrating,” Atlantic coach Jamelle Murray said. “Because we take pride in special teams. It is extremely frustrating. We take a lot of pride in it and it definitely hurt us. That’s something we’re big on.”
Special teams were the difference for McArthur (10-2) and helped the Mustangs build a three-score first-half lead.
“This year, that was the biggest focus,” McArthur coach Robert Ortega said. “How do we become great at special teams? Teams like St. Thomas win all phases because they’re really good at special teams. So, we as coaches went into the lab and we’ve been non-stop. We take it serious. It’s huge. It’s a big part of the game plan for us.:
McArthur blocked a punt on Atlantic’s opening drive of the game and ended up taking an early 3-0 lead on a short field goal.
Following a nice punt return in the second quarter, Kenton Louis ripped off a touchdown run. Semaj Fleming added a touchdown run later in the quarter to extend the Mustangs lead to 17.
Atlantic’s defense flexed its muscle in the second half with a quick three-and-out to force a punt on the opening drive. The Eagles drove down the field and Hanniford, a Ball State wide receiver commit, capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown run.
“They did a great job setting the tone and shutting them out in the second half,” Murray said of the defense. “So that was great. The kids came out and worked hard on the back end. We just didn’t start fast enough.”
Atlantic had a chance to score another touchdown after recovering a fumble deep in McArthur territory in the third quarter, but the offensive line was called for two false start penalties inside the two-yard line. Instead, the Eagles settled for a 23-yard field goal to cut the lead to seven.
Hanniford’s second touchdown run, with 11:30 remaining in the game cut the lead to one. On the extra point attempt. McArthur was able to get pressure up the middle for the block.
Atlantic got the ball two more times in the second half, but special teams miscues cost them both times. The Eagles had a chance for good field position, but were penalized for running into the punter and a personal foul after the play. McArthur still had to punt, but the ball was moved up 20 more yards before the kick.
The Eagles last drive started at their own 7-yard line after the punt returner opted to pick up the ball at the 1-yard line and attempt a return rather than let the ball bounce into the end zone for a touchback. The drive ended with a McArthur interception and the Mustangs were able to run out the clock.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Atlantic football struggles on special teams, falls to McArthur
