- April 3, 2025
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Donovan Montoyo avoids pressure in the pocket against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Jordan Belle catches a pass against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
The Bulldogs run onto the field at the start of the game against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Damien Irven returns a punt against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Damien Irven attempts to defend a pass against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Damien Irven returns a kickoff. Photo by Ray Boone
Damien Irven celebrates after successfully defending a pass. Photo by Ray Boone
Deshaun Hugee breaks a tackle as he runs toward the first down marker. Photo by Ray Boone
Deshaun Hugee carries defenders down the field during a run. Photo by Ray Boone
Deshaun Hugee carries defenders down the field during a run. Photo by Ray Boone
Deshaun Hugee evades a defender during a run. Photo by Ray Boone
Ja'Corey Benjamin returns a interception against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Ja'Corey Benjamin returns a interception against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Donovan Montoyo avoids a rusher in the pocket against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Donovan Montoyo throws a pass down field against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Donovan Montoyo throws a pass down field against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Nelson Paul chases down DeLand's quarterback. Photo by Ray Boone
Nelson Paul chases down DeLand's quarterback. Photo by Ray Boone
Stephen Usina drills a field goal against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Tallin Coates rams into DeLand's QB. Photo by Ray Boone
Tallin Coates brings down DeLand's RB. Photo by Ray Boone
Dennis Shorter looks toward the referee at the end of the game. Photo by Ray Boone
Ty Jenkins runs the ball against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Tallin Coates rams into DeLand's QB. Photo by Ray Boone
Tallin Coates brings down DeLand's QB. Photo by Ray Boone
Woody Dezius brings down DeLand's running back. Photo by Ray Boone
Ty Jenkins runs the ball against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Ty Jenkins runs the ball against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
Ty Jenkins runs the ball against DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
FPC coach Travis Roland speaks to the team after their loss to DeLand. Photo by Ray Boone
With Flagler Palm Coast needing to convert a critical fourth down in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter against district rival DeLand, FPC coach Travis Roland turned to one of his best defenders to lead the offense: senior cornerback Dennis Shorter.
“If it’s crunch time, Dennis is the kind of guy we’re going to trust,” Roland said.
With FPC down a touchdown, Shorter caught a pass on fourth-and-7 to keep FPC’s hopes alive with less than 2 minutes remaining in the game.
FPC’s offense was able to claw its way to DeLand’s 20. And on fourth-and-3 with 1 minute left, Shorter rocketed into the air and pulled down a pass over a defender for another crucial first down.
And finally, with 17 seconds left, FPC faced a final fourth down from the 5. Quarterback Donovan Montoyo rifled a pass to Shorter, hitting him in the hands. But with the weight of a defender on his back, he couldn’t hold on.
The ball fell to the ground. DeLand regained possession and kneeled to run out the clock.
Despite a dominant effort by FPC’s defense, which held DeLand to 226 total yards of offense, FPC fell 10-3 on the night of Friday, Oct. 20, on senior night at Sal Campanella Memorial Stadium.
Roland said Friday night’s loss was similar to FPC’s first loss of the season: a 21-0 defeat at the hands of Seminole on Sept. 7. The Bulldogs’ offense had no trouble finding the red zone but couldn’t get into the end zone.
FPC settled for a 32-yard field goal by Stephen Usina in the second quarter but failed to score for the remainder of the game. FPC had 150 yards of total offense — 72 of which came from Montoyo.
“We just couldn’t punch it in,” Roland said. “And that’s what you’ve got to do in the red zone.”
The main killer: penalties.
FPC was flagged seven times for 60 yards over the first two quarters. The first came during one of the game’s biggest plays. FPC’s Ja’Corey Benjamin intercepted DeLand’s Jadyn Nirschl and took it 80 yards to the end zone to give FPC a brief lead — until a block in the back on the return negated the score, setting FPC up at midfield. Still, FPC drove inside the DeLand 10 with 3 minutes to play in the half, only to have a first-and-goal from the 7 turn into a fourth-and-goal from the 50 after back-to-back holding calls and a poor snap.
“We were on the wrong end of the referees’ flags tonight,” Roland said. “We just have keep playing and figure it out.”
FPC (7-2, 2-1) travels to face another district rival in Mandarin at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26, in the final game of the regular season. Their hopes for a district title are on the line.
“This loss hurts, but we’ve really got to come together as a unit,” defensive end Nelson Paul said. “Everybody has to focus.”
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