Feb 1,
2001 - 02:24 PM
Bulls, Cowboys in 4A-7 final
TAMPA - Bloomingdale and
Gaither each pitched a shutout Wednesday and will face each other in the Class
4A-District 7 championship game Friday night.
Bloomingdale (16-6) used a
physical style of play to outmuscle Palm Harbor (17-6-1) en route to a 2-0
victory. Brandon Hancock scored the game-clinching goal in the 69th minute and
added a nice back-heel pass on Donald Bermudez's goal in the 34th minute.
Paul Reynolds scored twice
and Bryce Wegerle added another on a free kick from 22 yards as Gaither
(19-3-1) overcame a sluggish start for a 3-0 win against Hillsborough (3-12-1).
Bloomingdale coach Dave
Tennian said in the two previous matches against Palm Harbor - the two teams
split with identical 4-1 results - there was a key to success for the winning
team.
``Our prior two games were
both physical and whoever played the more physical game came out on top,'' he
said.
That was evident Wednesday
as Bloomingdale started knocking bodies around for about a 15-20 minute stretch
midway through the second half - three Bloomingdale players were given yellow
cards - as the Bulls nursed a 1-0 lead. The Hurricanes appeared to back off
just enough for Hancock to score the clinching goal as he dribbled around a
Palm Harbor defender and left-footed a shot past Matt Petersen.
Defending Class 4A state
champion Gaither will be play in its fifth consecutive district championship
game and for its third championship.
``Our expectations are so
high that we win a game 3-0 and are disappointed,'' Gaither coach Adrian Bush
said. ``But right now you are measured by results and tonight we got the
result.''
Class 3A-8: At Lake Region,
Jenkins ended Plant City's season with a 2-0 win in the semifinals. Jenkins
swept all three games between the two teams this season.
Class 2A-10: At Leto,
Jesuit received six goals from six different players in a 6-0 win against Tampa
Bay Tech. The Tigers, ranked No. 2 in the nation according to Fox Student
Sports, moved on to Friday's district championship game against Leto, 10-0
winner against Jefferson.
Class 2A-9: At Lakeland,
Armwood had an early lead on top-seeded Lake Gibson but couldn't hold on as the
Braves scored seven unanswered goals for a 7-2 victory