Special to the Telegraph-Times-Monitor
It was a big night for Rayvon Durant, Dee Williams and Thomas Williams, who combined to score all the Union County High School football team’s touchdowns in a 42-0 win over visiting Hollis Christian Academy on Oct. 15.
It was the second shutout of the season for the Tigers, who’ve won all but one of their games by double digits. Union (7-0) travels to Alachua to play Santa Fe on Friday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m.
Hollis, a school out of Jacksonville, was an in-season addition to the schedule after the Tigers’ opening game against Fort White was canceled. The Eagles (2-3) saw Union strike early and often, as the Tigers scored 28 first-half points.
Thomas Williams scored the first touchdown on a 6-yard run with 9:26 left in the first quarter. Closing out action in the opening quarter was Durant, who had a 2-yard scoring run with 32 seconds remaining in the
Jonathan Edwards converted on the PAT after Williams’ score, but missed his second attempt as the Tigers took a 13-0 lead into the second quarter.
It was when the Eagles turned the ball over on downs with 3:26 left in the second quarter that Union scored again. After a few short passing plays, Thomas Williams, who rushed for 43 yards on six carries, got his second touchdown. He also got the call on the two-point conversion attempt, which was good, giving the Tigers a 21-0 lead.
In the closing minute of the half, Hollis faced fourth-and-5 at its own 29-yard line. Eagles quarterback Malik Flood was flooded by a wave of Tigers, led by Trevor Holtzendorf, Hance Jones and Dayviontae “Bubba” Thompson. Curran Webb put an end to the chase, sacking the quarterback for a huge loss.
The Tigers’ offense took to the field, with Durant, who rushed for 56 yards on seven carries, getting his second touchdown on a 5-yard run. Edwards kicked the extra point as Union went into the locker room with a 28-0 lead.
Hollis turned the ball over on downs once again, giving the Tigers the ball at the Eagles’ 25-yard line early in the third quarter. Quarterback Martin Odum took to the air and completed a perfect, 25-yard pass, dropping it in over the shoulder of Dee Williams for a touchdown. Edwards’ extra point was good, and with 10:08 remaining, the Tigers led 35-0.
The Tigers scored points following the next Eagles’ possession as well. This time, Dee Williams fielded a punt on the Hollis 28-yard line and scampered untouched into the end zone. Edwards kicked the extra point to end the scoring at 42-0.
A lot of younger players, up from the junior varsity team, got playing time the remainder of the game.
Union rushed for 168 yards on 22 carries, led by the efforts of Durant and Thomas Williams.
Odum completed 1-of-2 passes for 25 yards, while Trenton Klein came in and completed his only pass attempt — to Alex Cortese for 14 yards.
Jones and Webb each recorded eight tackles for the defense. Each also had 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
Holtzendorf, Daylyn Diston and Malcolm Odum each had six tackles. Holtzendorf and Thompson each had a sack.
Connor Bresee and Gavin Jenkins each had an interception.
The Tigers now prepares to take on a Santa Fe team that is 0-7, coming off a 34-21 loss to St. John Paul II.
Union Head Coach Andrew Thomas wasn’t letting his players think about the Raiders’ record. He said a lot of hard work had to be done this week to get prepared for an extremely physical contest. Thomas asked his team, “Does 2008 mean anything?”
Thomas was referring to the last time the Tigers defeated Santa Fe. The two teams didn’t play for nine years after that 49-22 win, but they’ve played the last three years in contests that have been of the physical nature Thomas described. Santa Fe won 12-7 in 2018, 13-8 in 2019 and 10-7 last season.
The Raiders finished with losing seasons in 2018 and 2020 and were a .500 team in 2019.
“Do not underestimate this team and their 0-7 record,” Thomas told his players. “They always find a way to beat us.” He urged his players to use the weekend to rest and recuperate and be ready to work hard preparing for Santa Fe.
