Oh, So Close

The Marco Island Academy came oh-so-close to advancing to the state championship, storming back in the second half before ultimately losing 28-26 to host Windermere Prep on Saturday, November 8.

“Our boys played hard,” said Rich Costante, first-year Rays head coach. “But we came up just short against a well-coached Windermere team. We took huge strides for this program this season.”

The Rays, playing in the upstart Sunshine State Athletic Association (SSAA), excelled when playing like-minded schools. The SSAA started as a single-sport organization (football) in 2008 and now has 120 member schools. The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) encompasses over 850 schools.

The Rays won the program’s first playoff game last week, a 35-0 shutout of Babcock Ranch. Saturday’s late turnaround has the Rays believing in their future.

The Rays outscored Windermere 12-0 in the fourth quarter. They were unable to convert a two-point conversion after being penalized after scoring.

“We would have liked to play one more week,” Costante said, “but it wasn’t in the cards.”

The Rays (4-6) were led by Ryan Winterick, who scored twice and had 124 yards on four receptions. He also had nine tackles and picked off a pass on defense. Carter Good was 10-16 for 190 yards passing. Good had two TD passes and one interception. Sean McGowan had 61 yards on three receptions. Windermere (7-3) limited the Rays’ rushing attack to just 33 yards on 12 carries.

“The underclassmen we have coming back will use this as motivation next season,” Costante said. “We will try to build on this season’s successes. The senior laid the foundation, not the underclassmen need to build up from the foundation.”