Following their September 27th homecoming win against Walter Johnson High School by a score of 42-7, the Paint Branch Varsity Football team gained another victory on Friday night as they took down Wheaton High School by a score of 48-14. The win was their 4th win in a row and improved their record to 4-1.
Determined to win donuts for their film session the next day, which comes from shutting out their opponent, the Panthers prepared for the game with their regular practices and three film sessions during their LAP period that week. According to Shiloh Bryant-Serrano the goal for the week against the Knights was to create a big scoring gap between the teams during the first half with their starters, and for the second string to keep Wheaton from scoring in the second half.
Kicking off the game at 6:30 p.m. the Knights received the ball first but could not do much with the possession. The Panthers, on the other hand, scored two touchdowns in the first quarter to take a 14-0 lead. The Panther touchdowns came on a pass from Vincent Do from junior Chandler Slade and another pass from junior Do to senior Yvan Kemajou with 2 PAT’s from senior kicker Issac Organista.
The Panthers prep work during the week paid off as they continued to dominate in the first half. Two more rushing touchdowns, both from sophomore Alijah Bah, another rushing touchdown from senior Makai Miles, and three more PAT’s from Organista staked the Panthers to a commanding lead at the end of the first half at 35-0. .
The halftime show performed by Paint Branch’s poms team kept fans entertained and excited to continue cheering on our Panther varsity football team.
Entering the second half, the Panthers received the ball first. The second half turned out to be more of the same with the Panthers adding a touchdown by Dominic Rich to up the lead and strong defense which kept the Knights from scoring for another quarter. This dominance allowed the second string to get some playing time. The third quarter ended with the Panthers up 41-0.
The final quarter of the game, unfortunately, ended the Panthers’ chance of receiving donuts for the film session the next day as a pick-6 by the Wheaton defense on a pass from sophomore Leoul Solomon allowed the Knights to record their only touchdown and PAT of the game. On the sidelines you could see the Panthers visibly and hysterically upset knowing what the touchdown from the Knights meant for them.
With one more touchdown and PAT from both teams, the game ended with a final score of 48-14. The Panthers now shift their attention to a big matchup with undefeated Northwest on Thursday, October 10th at 6:00. Show up to support our Panthers if you can!