LAKEWOOD RANCH — Now, it’s a rivalry.
During the last three years when Lakewood Ranch and Braden River met on the football field, the stands were packed and the passions ran high. But it wasn’t a true rivalry because the same team won each time.
To make matters worse for the school east of I-75, Braden River was the newest school in the county and despite looking like Lakewood Ranch’s little brother, the Pirates beat the Mustangs every year.
That finally changed Friday night when the host Mustangs rode the legs of Taryn Laws and its mammoth offensive line to a 21-7 victory in the regular season opener for both teams.
“I feel like a weight has been lifted off of me. I didn’t want to leave here with four straight losses to them,” Laws said.
“We made history tonight, and it was a statement game for us. In the second half we just produced and wore them down.
“They couldn’t stop us. We kept running the same play over and over.”
At 5-foot-7, 170 pounds, Laws might have been the smallest player on the field, but he put up giant numbers. The senior rushed for 145 yards on 31 carries, with 105 yards coming in the second half.
The Mustangs’ offensive philosophy in the fourth, when they broke a 7-7 deadlock, was feed the beast that was Laws had turned into.
The Mustangs also got their win despite their celebrated quarterback, Reggie Lindsey, exiting in the second quarter with a sprained wrist. He was in street clothes during the second half.
Backup QB Jeren Kowalewski hit Daniel Clifford with a 31-yard pass to give the Mustangs a first down at the Braden River 20. Laws ran for four yards and then took it in from 16 to give Lakewood Ranch a 14-7 lead with 8:30 left in the game.
The Mustangs forced Braden River to punt and then went 56 yards to score a touchdown. Laws carried seven straight times to get the ball down to the 1, and Kowalewski took it in from a yard out to account for the final score with 1:31 left in the game.
Lakewood Ranch tied the score at 7-7 with 2:30 remaining in the third quarter on a 5-yard pass from Kowalewski to Clifford to cap a 47-yard drive that began when Austin Slade recovered a fumble.
“It seems like every year something would happen,” Mustangs head coach Shawn Trent. “I am not sure how bad the injury is to Reggie. Kowalewski settled down after a ragged start and did a good job in the second half. Laws better have a lot of yards running behind those big boys up front. They are going to wear down some people.”
Braden River went with junior Steve Ross at quarterback and moved last year’s signal caller, Ryan Fischer, to receiver.
The Pirates got on the board first when Ross connected with Oladipo Kolawole on a 54-yard pass to give them a first down at the 3. Two plays later, Ross took it in from a yard out with 4:30 left in the first half.
The Pirates looked to be in control when they took the second-half kickoff down to the Lakewood Ranch 31, but Anthony Asay halted the drive with an interception. The Pirates got the ball back on a pick by Durrell Dowling but couldn’t do anything with it.
“They wore us down at the end. I think momentum had a lot to do with it,” first-year Pirates coach Don Purvis said.
“We were playing great football in the first half and shot ourselves in the foot with some turnovers we can’t afford to make. Then they just started wearing us down.
“We have a bunch guys who are new, and for most of the kids it was their first varsity experience in a rivalry game on the road. It’s asking a lot and they played pretty good football.”
Jarred Pate led the Pirates with 95 yards on 16 carries, while Ross completed 4 of 13 passes for 94 yards with an interception. Kowalewski was 3 for 7 passing for 52 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
