West Boca Raton Snaps Cardinal Newman’s Five-Year Local Win Streak in Statement Win

Posted on September 11, 2026 by Brandon Odoi

BOCA RATON, Fla. — West Boca Raton put its defense on full display Thursday night, throttling Cardinal Newman 24-7 in a showdown between two reigning Florida state champions and handing the Crusaders their first loss to a Palm Beach County opponent since 2021.

The win pushes the Bulls to 3-0 on the season and reinforces their standing as the team to beat in Palm Beach County. Cardinal Newman, the defending Class 1A state champion, falls to 3-1 with its 20-game county winning streak now in the past.

Defense Sets the Tone Early

Heavy rain before kickoff left the field soft and the ball slick, and it was West Boca’s defense that adjusted first. The Crusaders managed just 50 yards of offense in the first half as the Bulls forced two fumbles and an interception, converting the takeaways into a 10-0 halftime lead.

C.J. Jackson and Jemari Foreman each recovered a fumble, and Larry Morgan III added an interception, repeatedly putting West Boca’s offense in position to capitalize on Cardinal Newman’s mistakes in the rough conditions.

Wally Harmon opened the scoring with a 42-yard field goal before adding a rushing touchdown, and Trey Moran punched in a rushing score of his own before finding Anderson Gracilien through the air to help put the game out of reach.

Cardinal Newman avoided the shutout in the second half when Janarro Sumpter broke free for a 71-yard touchdown run — just the second touchdown West Boca’s defense has allowed all season.

Why It Matters

Both programs came in with state championship pedigree: West Boca Raton has won back-to-back Florida 6A titles, while Cardinal Newman is the reigning 1A champion. The Crusaders hadn’t lost to a county opponent since falling to Benjamin in 2021, a streak of 20 straight wins over Palm Beach County competition that West Boca brought to an end in front of a nationally broadcast audience.

With the win, West Boca Raton enters the heart of its schedule at 3-0 and squarely in the conversation among Florida’s top teams, while Cardinal Newman will look to regroup after having its long local dominance snapped.

Football Hotbed will have more on both programs as the season continues.

About Brandon Odoi

Brandon Odoi is a tenured journalist. He's covered youth football since 8th grade, high school football since 2009 and began covering college football in 2011 as a beat writer for the University of Miami Athletic programs. In 2011, he founded Football Hotbed a national multi-media platform for football across the country. He's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and spent his first five years as a professional working at ABC Television Network, ending his career as a producer in Miami. He's married with two sons and a daughter and resides in South Florida.
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