Trinity Catholic tops Union County
Lucas powers Celtics to win over Tigers.
Trinity Catholic’s Wyatt Lucas (29) flips into the end zone for a touchdown ahead of Union County’s Jeffrey Brugh (2) and Lane Jackson (20) during a football game at Trinity Catholic High School in Ocala, Fla. on Friday, Oct. 17, 2025. Trinity Catholic won the game 17-6. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2025.
Trinity Catholic senior tailback Wyatt Lucas ran for 111 yards and scored two touchdowns, while the Celtics’ defense had two interceptions and a blocked extra point in a 17-6 win over Union County on Oct. 17.
The win, which was earned by overcoming a litany of penalties and mental mistakes, improved Trinity Catholic to 3-4 on the season, while the loss dropped Union County to 2-5.
“We got the win, but we have a lot of work to do,” said first-year Trinity Catholic coach Clint Hart. “The guys are still trying to gel and mesh. We had way too many penalties and mistakes and we have to get that fixed. Wyatt is a horse, and we just have to figure a way to get him the ball 15 to 20 times a game. We have some weapons on offense and it’s just putting them in the right place to be successful.”
The first quarter was a defensive battle with neither team able to generate any kind of offense. Union County forced Trinity Catholic to punt late in the period and a good return gave the Tigers the ball at midfield. Union County marched 50 yards in 10 plays with senior quarterback Cadenz Merriex tossing a 5-yard touchdown pass to senior running back Alec McClellon. Merriex completed 10 of 16 passes for 54 yards with two interceptions. The extra point was blocked by Trinity Catholic’s Christian Neal to leave the Tigers ahead by a score of 6-0 with 10:24 remaining in the second period.
Trinity Catholic wasted no time in answering as a good kick return gave the Celtics excellent field position at their 45. On first down, Lucas swept around right end behind solid blocking and raced untouched down the sideline for a 55-yard scoring scamper. The extra point by junior Andrew Leonard gave Trinity Catholic a 7-6 lead.
Union County went three-and-out and was forced to punt. The Celtics drove 69 yards in six plays as senior quarterback Carter Schofield completed several passes and Lucas powered his way into the end zone from 9-yards out. Schofield was 6 of 13 passing for 37 yards with one interception. The point after by Leonard gave Class 1A Trinity Catholic a 14-6 lead with 3:23 remaining in the quarter.
On its ensuing possession, Union County marched down the field and scored on a 15-yard pass play with 0.7 seconds left in the period, but the touchdown was negated by an illegal lineman downfield penalty against the Tigers. Merriex was sacked on the next play to end the threat and the half.
The third quarter was dominated by both defenses and numerous penalty flags on seemingly every play. Trinity Catholic put together a solid drive in the fourth period with Lucas gashing the Union County defense for big chunks of yardage. A third down end around failed to gain the necessary yardage and Leonard came on to boot a 37-yard field goal to give the Celtics a little breathing room with a lead of 17-6 with 3:29 left to play.
Union County’s hopes for a miracle rally ended with an interception by Trinity Catholic sophomore safety Noah Kaylor. The Celtics ran out the clock to secure the victory. Trinity Catholic will host P. K. Yonge in a crucial district game on Oct. 24.
“That’s a key district game and we need to be ready to play,” coach Hart said. “A win would put us in good shape for the playoffs.”
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