BY ANTONIO HENDERSON
Special to the Telegraph-Times-Monitor
Quarterback Trenton Klein passed for three touchdowns and rushed for another as the Union County High School football team spoiled Santa Fe’s homecoming, defeating the Class 2S Raiders 42-7 on Oct. 20 in Alachua.
The Tigers (4-3), who will travel to play Dixie County on Thursday, Oct. 26, at 7:30 p.m., came up with four interceptions on defense, with Dayquan Diston picking off two passes.
Santa Fe (0-8) received the opening kickoff, with its returner (seemingly not knowing where he was on the field) taking a knee at the 1-yard line. The Raiders didn’t let that get to them, though, completing a 37-yard bomb to Ben Hockman. Another pass attempt was incomplete because of the pressure brought by Thomas Williams. Klein then came up with a 12-yard sack.
The Raiders would strike in the air again, with Hockman making his way downfield for a 66-yard touchdown. Santa Fe added the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
Running back Bobo Woodall gave the Tigers the momentum they needed with a 49-yard kickoff return to the 50. Williams got back-to-back carries, gaining 11 yards. Klein then went deep to a wide-open Woodall, with the result being a pass-interference penalty against the Raiders. Union stayed in the air, with Klein hitting Gavin Jenkins for a 24-yard touchdown. Jonathan Edwards kicked the extra point to tie the score with 9:18 to play in the first quarter.
Jenkins finished with two catches for 39 yards.
Santa Fe went back to its passing game, with Mathew Johnson gaining 6 yards. The Tigers jumped offsides on second down to give the Raiders a first down. Lionel Walker had a 7-yard carry before the Raiders were penalized for a false start. A tackle by Klein made it third-and-5. Raiders quarterback Tison Thomas broke a tackle and dumped the ball off to a wide-open Ziren Turner for a 25-yard gain.
The Tigers then got a tackle for a 2-yard loss by Erich Seager. Thomas completed a pass to Brook Zeller, who gained 5 yards after being tackled by Brycen Boney. Klein then made his way into the backfield on a blitz, getting a sack for a loss of 5 yards. Klein brought the pressure again on fourth-and-15, with Santa Fe turning the ball over on downs on an incomplete pass.
Woodall broke off a 65-yard run. The Tigers went back to Woodall, but he was held to no gain. Klein then hit Woodall on a quick screen for a 10-yard touchdown. Edwards’ extra point was good, making the score 14-7 in favor of the Tigers with 3:25 left in the first quarter.
Klein, who made four tackles for loss in all, brought a player down for a 2-yard loss on Santa Fe’s next possession, setting up a third-and-6 play. Erick Hockman completed 15- and 6-yard passes for the Raiders, who then gave the ball to Walker, who gained 4 yards in setting up third-and-1. Here came Klein once again, with a big hit for a 4-yard loss. After unsuccessfully trying to draw the Tigers offsides, the Raiders threw an incomplete pass, but Union was penalized for pass interference, giving Santa Fe a first down.
The Tigers’ Jacob Jenkins fought through the offensive line to make a tackle for a 1-yard loss. After an incompletion, a screen pass on third down was limited to a 5-yard gain on a tackle by Jenkins and Connor Bresee. Santa Fe went for it on fourth-and-6, with Bresee bringing the pressure on a 10-yard sack.
Woodall gained 13 yards on a run play, but he was tackled for a 5-yard loss on a screen pass on the next play. Klein completed a 19-yard pass to Boney, followed by a 6-yard run by Williams. Another run by Williams gained 5 yards and a first down.
The drive stalled, but Edwards kicked a 35-yard field goal to put Union ahead 17-7 with 7:28 to play in the second quarter.
Santa Fe punted after three plays on its next series. Seager’s pressure led to an incomplete pass on first down, while Klein made a tackle for a 1-yard gain on second down. A third-down pass was incomplete.
Union’s offense took over at its own 46 after the punt. Klein called his own number, rushing for a 46-yard touchdown and a 23-7 lead with 5:54 left in the second quarter. The extra point was no good.
Klein had five carries for the game, gaining 107 yards.
The Raiders began moving the ball through the air. Ben Hockman caught a pass for a 9-yard gain. After a 7-yard run by Walker, Hockman caught a 20-yard pass. Santa Fe’s next pass attempt, however, was picked off by Diston.
Union kept it on the ground, with Klein calling his own number on back-to-back runs of 22 and 38 yards. The Tigers also benefitted from an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty on the Raiders.
Staying on the ground, Johnte Nichols took a handoff for a 5-yard touchdown. Edwards added the extra point to make it 30-7 with 1:04 remaining in the first half.
Diston returned the kickoff to open the second half 40 yards, but the Tigers’ offense went three-and-out.
Union’s defense made a stand and forced the Raiders to go three-and-out. Diston had a big run on the punt return, gaining 35 yards.
Santa Fe recorded a sack for a 5-yard loss, but Klein would come back and throw a pass to the back of the end zone, which Bryan Tyson caught for a 20-yard touchdown and a 36-7 lead with 7:38 to play in the third quarter. The extra point was no good.
Klein completed 10 of 13 passes for 145 yards.
The Raiders’ offense would earn a new set of downs on runs of 4 yards by Walker and 7 yards by Jordan Watson. Santa Fe would later go for it on fourth-and-2, with Turner catching a 6-yard pass. The Raiders set up the run game for Watson, who had back-to-back carries
for a total of 9 yards. On third-and-1, Santa Fe tried to catch the defense sleeping on a pass to a wide-open receiver in the end zone. Diston came out of nowhere, picking the pass off and taking it back to the 48-yard line.
Williams had a run of 17 yards for the Tigers, who then got a 37-yard catch from Woodall, who finished with five receptions for 64 yards. A deep pass to Jenkins resulted in pass interference by the Raiders. Later, on third-and-8, Klein, on a bootleg to the right, gained 9 yards to make it first-and-goal. Union fumbled on the next play, with the Raiders recovering.
Johnson had a 5-yard catch on a comeback route, but Diston forced a fumble, which was recovered by Santa Fe. A 3-yard run by Watson would give the Raiders a first down. Diston then broke up a pass before Jimmy Cox had back-to-back big plays for the defense — a tackle for no gain and a sack for a 6-yard loss. Santa Fe punted on fourth-and-16.
Blake McCoy returned the punt 72 yards for a touchdown with 5:39 to play in the fourth quarter. The extra point was no good.
The Tigers’ Deonte Jones picked off a pass on Santa Fe’s final possession, almost taking it to the house before getting tripped up with 19 seconds on the clock.
Klein led the defense with eight tackles, while Boney and Ashton Newsom finished with seven and six, respectively.
The Tigers’ next game is between two teams just outside the top 10 in the Florida High School Athletic Association’s Class 1R power rankings. Dixie (6-2) is 11th, while Union is 12th.
Dixie is coming off a 41-7 win over Hamilton County.
