Lake City romps past Manning

LAKE CITY — In the weeks since the infamous brawl against Wilson and the subsequent penalties that arose from it, Lake City wanted just one thing — a complete football game.

Friday night against Manning, the Panthers got it. Lake City hammered Manning in every facet of the game during a 54-14 victory at Ward Memorial Stadium.

In addition to scoring through the air and on the ground, Lake City got a 63-yard punt return from Sheldon Robinson and a 24-yard fumble return from Antwon Wallace.

“After we beat Wilson, our kids didn’t get a chance to celebrate a win against the defending Class 3A state champions, and I feel bad for that,” Panthers coach Justin Gentry said. “People had questions about our kids’ character ever since (the brawl), and they showed how much character they had tonight.”

“We have a lot of soul searching to do. We have a good team, but the chemistry isn’t there yet,” Manning coach Robbie Briggs said. “We got beat by a better team. We ran into a buzzsaw tonight.”

From the opening kickoff, Lake City’s defense took out its frustration on the Monarchs. With the exception of a 1-yard scoring run by Dayshawn Dixon near the end of the first half, Manning could do nothing offensively.

The Monarchs gained just 56 total yards with one first down and an interception in the opening 24 minutes.

It didn’t take long for the Panther offense to capitalize on the play of its defense. Facing third-and-11 on the Manning 45, Deshon Butler lofted a pass that Desmond Haygood pulled down at the 20. Haygood made several moves and outraced the Monarchs to the end zone.

The PAT was blocked, and Lake City had a 6-0 lead with 9:15 left in the opening quarter.

After Manning was stopped on downs, Lake City went on a seven-play, 72-yard TD march.

Keyed by a 28-yard pass from Butler to Haygood on fourth-and-9, Shon Carson powered his way to paydirt from 2 yards away. The 2-point conversion was successful, giving the Panthers a 14-0 advantage at the 1:54 mark of the first quarter.

“Everyone predicted us to lose this game,” said Carson, who finished with 154 yards on 14 carries with three TDs. “Our offensive line blocked well, and our defense kept us in good scoring position all night.”

The Panthers refused to let off the throttle in the second quarter. Carson and Stevenson Gaston added TD runs, and Butler hooked up with Haygood for a 50-yard scoring strike as time expired to give Lake City a 34-7 halftime lead.

Gaston finished with 71 yards on 11 carries. Butler added 51 yards rushing to go with 127 yards passing. Haygood caught three passes for 123 yards.

“We got to them early,” said Gentry, whose team outgained Manning 438-156. “This is the first time since I’ve been a coach that we didn’t have to punt.”

“(Lake City) beat us on hustle plays,” Briggs said. “They beat us on a punt return, a fumble return and a long pass before the half. That is unacceptable.”

Jason Witherspoon led Manning with 74 yards rushing and a score. Brandon Miller added 116 yards passing.

Lake City plays at Crestwood on Friday at 7:30 p.m., while Manning travels to Lakewood.