Published: Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009

Updated: Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009

Tarpons roll past Mustangs

LAKEWOOD RANCH — The Lakewood Ranch Mustangs have come a long way from last season’s one-win campaign.

On Friday, a Class 4A-District 11 powerhouse showed the Mustangs just how far they still have to go.

Punta Gorda Charlotte dominated every facet of the game, scoring on offense, defense and special teams and holding Lakewood Ranch to fewer than 100 total yards in a 49-0 district victory.

Tarpons quarterback Kyle Midgett threw for 201 yards and three touchdowns and sneaked in for another score to lead Charlotte (7-1, 2-0 4A-11). Running back Michael Bellamy picked up 109 yards on 17 carries and turned in another touchdown.

So dominant was the Tarpons’ performance that Charlotte scored twice in the final four minutes, eight seconds of the first half without its offense touching the ball.

“I said that going into the game I thought they were the best team we played all year,” Lakewood Ranch coach Shawn Trent said. “They play hard, and they’re talented. ... We couldn’t do anything on offense, and we didn’t make plays on defense. It usually doesn’t work out too well when that happens.”

The Mustangs (4-4, 1-1) entered the game tied for first place in the district.

They will be off next week before visiting Palmetto on Nov. 6 with a playoff berth on the line.

“Even if we won this one, we still had to beat Palmetto or this one doesn’t matter. It all comes down to one game,” Trent said.

Friday’s contest was over early. A running clock was employed for the final quarter after Midgett’s sneak with 33.1 seconds to go in the third quarter gave Charlotte a 42-0 lead.

The Tarpons scored on their first two possessions, the second on a 15-yard reverse-field scamper by Bellamy with 20 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Midgett later hit Nickolas Stephenson on a crossing route for a 20-yard score to make it 21-0 with 4:08 remaining in the half. Stephenson caught a pair of touchdown passes.

If there remained any doubt about the outcome, Charlotte put it to rest with a pair of unconventional scores before the break. Cory Mentzer blocked a Zach Larson punt inside the Lakewood Ranch 20, and Hunter McCarthy recovered in the end zone with 2:49 to play. Three plays later, Charlotte’s Alexander Mut stepped in front of a Reggie Lindsey pass and went 43 yards for the score to make it 35-0 at halftime.

Lakewood Ranch managed 82 total yards and six first downs. Taryn Laws rushed for 54 yards on 15 carries, 37 of those yards coming in the second half. Lindsey completed 6 of 19 passes for 34 yards and the interception.

“I’ll have to watch the film and see what happened. I guess we didn’t do a good job of getting the kids ready to play,” Trent said. “We’ve got to play. (Friday), we didn’t come out to play. I take full responsibility. It’s my fault.”