The Lemon Bay Manta Rays will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Booker Tornadoes at 7:30 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Lemon Bay had already proven themselves in the regular season, and didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They breezed by Frostproof at home to the tune of 39-7. Considering Lemon Bay has won six contests by more than 19 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Fort Meade typically have all the answers at home, but on Friday Booker proved too difficult a challenge. Booker strolled past Fort Meade with points to spare, taking the game 33-17. Booker pushed the score to 33-9 by the end of the third, a deficit Fort Meade cut but never quite recovered from.
Josiah Booker was a one-man wrecking crew for Booker as he rushed for 134 yards and three touchdowns on only eight carries. Booker's longest rush was for an incredible 74 yards. Omarion Patterson was another key contributor, rushing for 65 yards and a touchdown.
The win was the third in a row for Lemon Bay, bringing their record for this year to 10-1. Even more impressive is the teams they beat to make that streak: Frostproof, North Port, and Booker. As for Booker, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 7-4.
Lemon Bay beat Booker 26-18 when the teams last played back in October. Does Lemon Bay have another victory up their sleeve, or will Booker turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
