Lauren Berger, a 2002 Countryside High School graduate, appeared on the Today Show on January 5th, 2012 to talk about the importance of internships and her new book “All Work and No Pay”.  Lauren, also known as the Intern Queen, has completed 15 internships during her four years of college and has now started her own business helping others get internships.

St. Petersburg     14

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Clearwater         0

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It was expected Countryside would handle Clearwater. It was expected the Cougars defense would stymie senior quarterback Rob Yarbrough. It was expected senior running back Diomi Roberts would trample Clearwater.

Well, scratch the last two.

Countryside got it done through the air, especially in the first half, beating Clearwater 35-0 Friday.

“It started early getting short completions and we were able to build confidence from there,” Cougar senior quarterback Gray Crow said. “Soon after, we were clicking on all cylinders.”

Crow was 10 of 18 for 110 yards and two touchdowns.

Yarbrough had a much tougher outing, but despite overwhelming pressure went 14 of 23 for 100 yards. He also rushed for 20 yards.

The Tornadoes had no answer for the Cougars’ skill players, Marrieo Taylor and Roberts. Roberts finished off two long catches with two short touchdown runs in just the first quarter. He finished with 60 yards rushing and 75 receiving. Taylor was just shy of 75 yards receiving with a touchdown.

The Cougars were up 28-0 when they sent in wildcat quarterback, junior Mike Tsalickis, to grind it out. And grind it, the Cougars did  behind a staunch offensive line.

“Jeff Albert is out anchor up front,” coach Jared Davis said. “(Zach) Rosinski and Jake Smith played great, too. We’re pretty confident in sending six guys (offensive linemen) on the field.”

The swarming Cougar defense held the Tornadoes to just over 150 yards of total offense.

“Clearwater makes you cover the whole field and we were able to do that,” Davis said.

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Story by tampabay.com/hometeam

Largo                  18

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For most of the 21st century, Largo has worn the crown as the marquee program in Pinellas County. The reign, though, appears to have come to an end.

Diomi Roberts rushed for 180 yards and three touchdowns to lead Countryside to a 28-18 victory over the Packers on Friday. The Cougars (3-0) have taken three straight regular-season meetings from Largo since a playoff loss to it in 2008.

“Everybody talks about (Largo’s) a physical team,” said Roberts, whose team rushed for 219 yards in all.

“We just wanted to show them who was more physical and who was the best team in Pinellas County. They’ve got a good tradition here at Largo, and now we’re starting one at Countryside.”

Largo (1-2) had its chances. After a 40-yard punt return for a touchdown by Derrick Doss cut its lead to 20-12 with 10:27 left, Countryside embarked on a 12-play, 59-yard drive capped by Roberts’ 7 -yard touchdown.

The Cougars converted a fourth and 1 from the Packers 37, Roberts taking an option pitch 7 yards.

Almost as important, the drive took nearly seven minutes off the clock.

“I was going to punt, and Diomi came up to me and said, ‘Coach, I got this. Run this play, and it’s mine,’  ” Cougars coach Jared Davis said. “I said, ‘If you’re telling me that, you better do it.’  ”

The Cougars extend their regular-season win streak to 17 games. Three wins have come against the Packers.

“We don’t think about the past victories,” Roberts said. “We just think about the next one; the one in front of us.”

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Story by tampabay.com/hometeam

Part 1:

Part 2:

This footage was recorded live off the tv on September 11th, 2001.  We did have a minor technical issue plus the footage is on a 10 year old tape, so the quality isn’t very good.  Also we do not own the copyright for this footage.

Countryside    49

St. Pete             19

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The most anticipated matchup of the spring featuring the only two undefeated teams in the regular season turned out to be not much of a contest as the Cougars took control early and led 42-6 at the half. … Countryside quarterback Gray Crow operated out of a more wide-open offense that included the shotgun and five-receiver sets. He threw for 207 yards and four touchdowns in the first half. Two of Crow’s touchdown passes were to tight end A.J. Sattinger. The others were to Nico Morgado and Marrieo Taylor. There were some holes to fill on Countryside’s offensive line, but the new starters gave Crow plenty of protection. … Crow stayed in the game until the last series of the fourth quarter. … St. Petersburg was missing seven starters, including quarterback David Jones, who strained his hamstring during track season and was held out for precautionary measures. … Keegan Oberholzer started at quarterback for the Green Devils and threw a touchdown pass to Dallas Paletti in the first quarter. Oberholzer also scored on a quarterback sneak in the third quarter. Deangelo Reeves scored St. Petersburg’s final touchdown on a 3-yard run. … This is a rematch of last year’s spring game that the Green Devils won. Both teams will be playing in the same district and meet again in the final game of the regular season.

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This is the intro video that played just before senior breakfast started.

Canterbury               1

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Canterbury’s season opener against Countryside was just the kind of game coach Jody Moore envisioned.

A tough one.

For the first time in her six years at the school, Moore was able to schedule a Pinellas County public school team in a regular-season game.

It was a game that came down to the end Tuesday with the Cougars preserving a 2-1 win on Sommer Pollard’s throw home to catcher Hailee Keisling, who put the tag on the Crusaders’ Savvy Mitchell for the final out in the seventh inning.

“We always want to play up against stronger opposition,” said Moore, who guided Canterbury to the Class A state tournament for the second straight season last year. “We’re thankful for Countryside giving us the opportunity.”

It also was a tough test for the Cougars, who have nine freshmen on the roster, including four starters.

One of the starters was pitcher Eryn Rowe, who shook off a rough start to pick up her third win. In the first inning, Rowe hit leadoff batter Sarah Fleming, who stole second then scored on an error to give Canterbury a 1-0 lead.

Countryside (3-0) tied the game in the bottom of the inning when Keisling singled then scored on an error.

Keisling helped keep the Crusaders off the bases by throwing out four runners.

“I’m a coach that likes to take some chances,” Moore said. “We kept sending the runner, but Countryside made some plays behind the plate.”

The winning run came in the fifth inning when Pollard doubled, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Ayanna Andrews and scored on an error.

“This was a good game for us,” Countryside coach Kaylyn Bayly said. “Canterbury is a good team that’s made the final four a few years. We have a young team and this gives us some confidence.”

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West Orange          1

SCORE BY PERIOD

Countryside goalkeeper Danny George could think of just one thing Friday when the head referee held up one finger in the Class 6A region semifinal against Winter Garden West Orange.

“This is going to be the longest minute I’ve ever had to experience,” George said.

With the Cougars clinging to a 2-1 lead, George was correct as the Warriors sent every player forward, including keeper Juan Fajardo. George was peppered with one shot after another — five in the final minute — until at last the final whistle sounded, setting off a wild celebration by fans and players at midfield.

“I just didn’t want anything like the Plant game to happen again,” George said in reference to last season’s heartbreaker in which Countryside allowed Plant to score in the final minute of regulation then in overtime in a 2-1 defeat in the region semifinals. “We’ve worked so hard to get back to this point and beyond, I don’t think I could have taken it if the same thing happened again.”

The Cougars (23-1-1), No. 9 in the ESPN Rise poll, got off to a slow start then broke through early in the second half when Taylor Cook found Nikolai Hammer open at the top of the goalmouth and Hammer easily put it past Fajardo.

Countryside’s next goal with eight minutes to play typified the way the Cougars have played all season as Dalton Martinez received a pass from his brother, Jagger, and took the ball into the corner, where he chipped a cross over to the middle part of the penalty box. Derya Ekren, with his back to the goal, did a mini-bicycle kick sending the ball into the left corner of the goal.

The Warriors (13-2-1) made the game interesting 25 seconds later when Evan Cartwright put in a header off a cross on a corner kick by Camillo Villa.

“It’s been tough because we’ve had the talent but for whatever reason, we haven’t been able to capitalize on it,” Countryside coach Dave Sica said. “We’ve faced adversity throughout the year and from season to season, but when this group decides to work, they’re capable of achieving big things.”

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Plant                 21

Great Season Countryside!

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Video from Bay News 9 (Bright House Sports Network)

For most of the game, Plant High Jr. running back James Wilder was swimming alone against the tide, hoping against hope one of his teammates would at least wave a life preserver at him.

Wilder was the focal point of the Panthers offense in Friday’s Class 5A region final, especially after quarterback Phillip Ely left in the first quarter because of back spasms.

Countryside knew it and zeroed in on Wilder, sending waves of defenders at him.

But when it mattered most, when his team was down and needed a score, Wilder came through. He scored two second-half touchdowns and finished with 163 yards rushing to lift the Panthers to a 21-13 victory.

Plant (11-2) will host Lakeland in next week’s state semifinals.

“Countryside was keying on me, and coach (Bob Weiner) wanted to use me more as a decoy,” said Wilder, who has orally committed to Florida State.

“But I wanted to help the team out. I just told them to give me the rock.”
Wilder started strong on the game’s first possession, gaining 53 yards on five carries and scoring on a 2-yard run to give the Panthers a 7-0 lead.

The Cougars (12-1) fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and Plant recovered. But Countryside’s defense tightened up and forced the Panthers to settle for a field goal they missed.

The rest of the first half was a stalemate as neither team managed much offense. Countryside had minus-6 yards in the first quarter and just 6 yards after its first three possessions.

Plant couldn’t do anything either.

With Ely out of the game, the Cougars paid more attention to Wilder, holding him to 9 yards for the remainder of the first half. Midway through the second quarter, the Cougars offense came to life behind the running of Terry Johnson, who had 55 yards on six carries on a drive that ended with him scoring on a 1-yard run that tied the score.

Then the Cougars stuffed Wilder on fourth down on the Panthers’ next possession.

With less than two minutes remaining in the first half, Countryside quarterback Gray Crow hit Marrieo Taylor on a 42-yard completion, setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by Johnson with 47 seconds remaining. Ryan Halter’s extra point, though, was blocked by Wilder.
In the second half, the Cougars stayed conservative, hoping to use its run game to control the clock and hold the lead.

Countryside had two first downs on its opening possession of the half but did not get another until the final three minutes of the game.

The Panthers offense was running on a treadmill, too.

Then Wilder came to life.

With his team trailing 13-7 in the fourth quarter, Wilder ran off the right side on four carries for 56 yards, including an 8-yarder that proved to be the winning touchdown.

Wilder sealed the game on the next possession when he ran left, stiff-armed one tackler and tip-toed down the sideline for a 43-yard score.

“We knew Wilder was going to get the ball,” Countryside coach Jared Davis said. “That’s what Plant does when their back is against the wall. I would, too. He’s a great player. We just had too many missed tackles, and that cost us.”

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