Tampa Catholic-Boca Ciega cancelled

Posted Aug 27, 2010 by Bill Ward

Updated Aug 27, 2010 at 12:15 PM

For the second consecutive year, Tampa Catholic has had its Kickoff Classic football game cancelled.

Last season, the Crusaders’ preseason game with Naples Lely was axed because of a flu bug that ran through TC. This time, the Crusaders’ preseason game with Boca Ciega, slated for tonight in Gulfport, has been scrubbed due to the playing field’s poor conditions, TC coach Bob Henriquez said.

The field is unplayable because of this week’s heavy rains. The game will not be relocated or rescheduled, Henriquez said. Boca Ciega athletic director Solomon Lowery said he inspected the Pirates’ field early Thursday evening and made the decision to cancel the game.

“If we played on that field tonight, we would’ve torn it up so badly it would’ve been unplayable for all of our sports teams the remainder of the year,” Lowery said. “We looked into trying to play it elsewhere (in Pinellas County) but unfortunately, many of our schools’ fields are in the same situation.”

Henriquez said he is disappointed with the decision to cancel the game because his young squad needs the real-game experience.

“It’s disappointing because we really needed this game,” Henriquez said. “Last year, I knew we had a pretty good squad and a shot at going deep into the playoffs so I didn’t mind too much when the game was cancelled. This year, we’ve got a bunch of young guys who need the test. I really wanted to see how they reacted when they got hit by someone not on their own team. We really prepared well for this all week and were ready to play.”

Instead, Henriquez said the squad will practice today and prepare for next week’s regular season opener at home against Class 6A Groveland South Lake.