By Beth Jones
In their second season in the Sunshine State Athletic Association, the Pirates are back in the playoffs. The Fernandina Beach High School football team blanked Paxon’s Eagles 28-0 on Friday night to advance in the Atlantic division of the SSAA championship.
The Pirates (7-5) take on host West Nassau (11-1) Friday in the semifinal round. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
“The SSAA has been great for us, giving our players and community something to fight for after our regular season is over is awesome,” said Blake Willis, second-year head coach at FBHS.
Before last season, the Pirates had made the playoffs just twice since 2007, when Willis was a Pirate.
“The way the FHSAA was organizing our postseason opportunities wasn’t really the best for us, so being able to have a chance at winning something is great,” he said.
The Pirates and West Nassau Warriors both return to the playoffs this season. The Pirates avenged a regular-season loss last season, beating the Warriors 24-20 to advance in the playoffs in both teams’ debut in the SSAA.
In their regular-season matchup in September, the Warriors were victorious over the visiting Pirates 32-21.
“Our guys are excited for the rematch with West Nassau,” Willis said. “I think we’re a better team than when we played them in the regular season. We’re looking forward to a great game. It’s going to be a battle, and our guys are up for it.”
The Pirates advanced to the next round with Friday’s shutout over the visiting Paxon Eagles.
“I’m pleased with our efforts this past Friday against Paxon,” Willis said. “I know they were looking to come in here and get revenge from our spring game, and our guys did a great job taking on that task. They have some good players that have done some really great things this season. Us being able to subdue those players is real testament to our guys buying into their jobs on the team and trying to execute those roles effectively.”
Beckham Rohe hauled in a 14-yard pass from Ian Miller, and Aydin Poe reeled in a 73-yarder for a pair of Pirate touchdowns in the first quarter Friday night. Poe caught another Miller pass in the third quarter to give the Pirates a 21-0 lead over visiting Paxon.
D’ante Simms scored the final touchdown on a 50-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Miller completed 17 of 23 passes for 254 yards. Poe had four catches for 116 yards, and Rohe had six for 73. OJ Swift had two receptions for 28 yards, and Ethan Watts had three for 24. Khordel White, Traivon Martin and Jake Holbrook had one catch apiece.
Simms led the ground attack, with 11 rushes for 88 yards. Talan Van Delinder rushed seven times for 27 yards.
Garrett Beckstrom had four solo tackles and seven assists, and Devin Murray had five solo stops and four assists. Cayden McKinstrie and Watts recorded two tackles and five assists each.
Kalani Tucker sacked the quarterback, and he also had a pair of tackles and two assists. Murray and Jake Crawford intercepted Paxon passes.
bjones@nassaunewsline.net
