Monarch’s running game and late save by QB propels Knights to playoff win over Homestead
The Monarch football team used a punishing run game in their Class 7A regional quarterfinal against Homestead on Friday and was rewarded with a 28-21 victory at Coconut Creek High.
Florentino Lopez, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound junior quarterback had a big night with 149 yards on 21 carries and a pair of touchdowns but it was sophomore quarterback Jack Spaeder who came up big late in the fourth quarter.
Spaeder, who came into the game late with his team trailing 21-20 after Lopez suffered a left shoulder injury helped the Knights to the go-ahead touchdown. He completed a pair of passes to Antwaun Parham for first downs.
Spaeder scored the winning touchdown on a six-yard run over left tackle with 1:22 left to play. On the play, Spaeder was stripped of the ball by a Homestead defender just as he scored. But the referees ruled Spaeder had crossed the plane of the goal line before the ball came out, awarding Monarch the go-ahead touchdown.
Samari Reed, who also scored on a 23-yard run early in the fourth quarter, added a two-point conversion to give Monarch a seven-point lead.
Monarch (7-3) advances to a regional semifinal game next Friday at Miami Southridge. Homestead (4-5), who lost to St. Thomas Aquinas each of the last two years for the Class 3M state title, lost for the first time this season when scoring more than 14 points.
“Our quarterbacks being able to run gives us an advantage because of the great wide receivers that we gave,” Monarch coach Calvin Davis said. “We’re trying to catch our stride. I made some coaching mistakes that led to turnovers and that was on me. We won’t do that again.”
Monarch’s running attack ended the night with 295 yards on 38 carries and all four touchdowns scored.
Trailing 20-14 midway through the fourth quarter, the Broncos took advantage of two interceptions by senior defensive back Cordae Gamble that led to touchdowns. The first gave Homestead a 7-6 lead late in the first half on a Malachi Lewis 2-yard scoring run. The other gave the Broncos a 21-20 lead with 3:39 left in regulation on a 21-yard scoring pass from Lewis to Cortez Mills.
Lewis also threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Cascudo that cut the Knights lead to 20-14 with 9:13 left in regulation.
“It was a tough loss, but that’s playoff football.” Homestead coach Ronnie Thornton said. “We didn’t get enough stops to win the game. They wanted it more than us and that was the outcome of the game.”
Spaeder, who led the Knights passing game with 1,726 yards and 14 touchdowns entering Friday’s game, used his legs for winning score.
“I knew I had to step up when Tino went down,” Spaeder said. “I had to go in there and win the game for us. We went down and scored, and it was a great game.”
This story was originally published November 16, 2024 at 12:50 AM.