Ponte Vedra’s football winning streak came to and end with a 20-6 district loss to Fleming Island on Friday night.
According to head coach Steve Price it was the little things and certain bounces that did not go the Sharks’ way that made the ultimate difference in the game.
“It just didn’t fall our way tonight,” Price said. “We had some bad breaks and when three or four of them add up, you get beat by 14 points. We’re right there and I think we’ve got a good football team, but I don’t think we showed it as much as we could have tonight and that’s on me.”
It was struggle offensively for the Sharks, who did not get on the scoreboard until starting quarterback Nathan Bunkosky threw a strike to senior Luke Pirris on a slant pass in the red zone.
Pirris beat the defender to the spot with his route and walked into the endzone to cap a drive that started at the 11-yard line following a botched punt attempt by the Golden Eagles.
The Sharks went for the two-point conversion, but the Golden Eagles were there to sniff it out.
The Golden Eagles led 14-0 at halftime and 20-0 after three quarters prior to the late touchdown by the Sharks.
Ponte Vedra’s stingy defense had its hands full with the physical running style of Fleming Island starting running back Sam Singleton.
“That kid was a good player and a tough runner,” Pirris said. “It was definitely hard getting him down, so we just tried to rally to the ball, which is really what we do well.”
Late in the game the Sharks offense had the ball and Bunkosky hit a couple of first down completions, including one to Wyatt Rogers, who made a nice catch and got a foot down along the left sideline to keep the chains moving.
However, Bunkosky continued to take shots down the field but any hopes of a comeback bid came to an end after a pass was deflected and picked off.
The late drive was another example of how the Sharks continue to show that the issue is not effort, but execution of even the tiniest of details is key to the result.
“We had a good week of practice, but they just made more plays than us and that’s how they were able to beat us,” Pirris said. “We’ll work real hard this week and be ready to play Bartram (Trail). I have no doubt we’ll bounce back.”
