Palm Beach Central High School had to come from behind in the second quarter to overcome a 10-7 deficit before rolling to a 52-10 victory over visiting Wellington High School on Friday, Sept. 14. The Broncos retained the coveted Wellington Cup another year in one of the area’s biggest games of the season.
The Broncos improved to 3-1 and are 1-0 in district play. Palm Beach Central has not trailed in a game since their season-opener against Atlantic High School, where they lost 14-0.
The Broncos eventually turned seven of the nine Wolverine turnovers into scores on the night. “There’s three phases to every game: offense, defense and special teams,” Bronco head coach Tino Ierulli said. “The boys really came out to play tonight. I’m very, very proud of their performance in all three phases.”
The Broncos went up early 7-0 after Jesus Santiago intercepted Wolverine quarterback Austin Wallace and returned the ball to the Wellington 32-yard line. Wellington responded quickly with a field goal to trail 7-3 after driving to the Palm Beach Central 1-yard line. Mark Antony Richards gave the Wolverines (2-2) the lead when he ran to the outside for a 65-yard touchdown run, breaking tackles and hurdling defenders.
The 10-7 Wellington lead did not linger. Gen’Taris Oliver caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from R.J. Douriet, which helped the Broncos reclaim the lead. “We learned a lot of things from our first loss against Atlantic,” Ierulli said. “That first game really taught us a lot against one of the best teams in the state. Their maturity is getting better every week, and they showed how to battle back from adversity.”
Wellington’s defense was tasked with occupying the field most of the night, as the Wolverine offense often went three and out or turned over possession via punt or miscue. Palm Beach Central converted two more Wellington turnovers into 10 more points before the end of the first half to take a 24-10 advantage into the locker room.
The Broncos would cruise the rest of the way, turning seven of the nine Wellington turnovers into points to put the game out of reach for the Wolverines. Palm Beach Central put up another 28 points in the second half to notch the 52-10 win and hold the Wellington Cup another year.
Bronco quarterbacks Douriet and Michael Moreland combined for 342 yards through the air and three touchdowns. Receiver Bryan Robinson had five receptions for 181 yards and two scores. In addition to Oliver’s receiving score, he had a 28-yard punt return for a touchdown. DeAngelo Pompey and Kai’Shawn Curry each had a score. Brandon Hudgins and Griffin Lampton combined for seven sacks on defense for the Broncos.
Palm Beach Central will travel to Palm Bay on Friday, Sept. 21, while Wellington will be on the road at John I. Leonard.
