CLEARWATER — St. Petersburg pulled away from Clearwater in the fourth quarter of a wild back-and-forth contest. The much improved Tornadoes used the legs of sophomore Adarius Lemons to stay close, but it was not enough to overcome a tough Green Devils squad led by sophomore quarterback Austyn Causey.
Drive of the game: Clearwater trailed 26-16 at the half. St. Pete fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half, and Lemons scored from 13 yards on the next play. After a Lemons touchdown on the Tornadoes’ next drive to make it 30-26, it looked like Clearwater might be en route to winning its first game since the 2012 regular season. Green Devils running back Jarrett O’Connell scored from 18 yards to change the momentum and put St. Petersburg up for good.
Play of the game: Lemons spun out of a crowd of Green Devils and darted downfield into the end zone on a spectacular run in the second quarter, the second of his four touchdowns.
Stars of the game: Jacquel Waller scored three touchdowns for St. Petersburg. Lionel Hart returned a kick off 85 yards for the Green Devils. Lemons finished with 142 yards on 16 carries to go with his four touchdowns for Clearwater.
Final word: “We always talk about playing until the end of the game. Our kids understand that we are going to finish the game. My assistants do a great job of keeping the kids on an even keel.” — St. Petersburg coach Joe Fabrizio