For Robinson, last week’s 24-7 loss to East Bay was just about as sluggish and sloppy as it gets. There was little in the way of positives to take from the loss, and with the team shaken up by injuries heading into Friday night’s matchup with Alonso, the Knights were set to be tested with a little adversity. Like a student cramming at the last minute for an exam, Robinson passed the test with a 24-17 road victory, but narrowly escaping with the win didn’t make it any less satisfying.

“We talk about adversity and never giving in at any point in a game,” said Robinson head coach Shawn Taylor. “[It was] a great confidence builder, [a] great win to feed off of.”

With under three minutes to go in the game, quarterback Malik Tyson (’16) hit J.J. Henderson (’16), who beat his defender on a go route, for the go-ahead 85-yard touchdown. Tyson finished the night with 150 yards, two touchdowns and an interception while completing nine of 14 passes.

“Very big for our quarterback to step up tonight,” Taylor said.

The Knights took their first lead in the first quarter on a six-yard pass from Tyson to Henderson before extending the lead to 14-3 on a fumble recovery by Jaquan Jackson (’18).

Just when it appeared that the Knights had turned the corner with a 16-3 lead, the Ravens came storming back. A 26-yard touchdown run by Derrick Walker (’16) in the third quarter, followed by a Josh Elias (’16) 17-yard score in the fourth, gave Alonso the lead with 3:18 to go. From there, Tyson took control and found Henderson for the game-winner on 3rd and 16 from Robinson’s own 15-yard line.

The Knights (4-3) now have to prepare for next week’s game against district-rival Jesuit (7-0), a matchup with serious playoff implications.

“Playoffs basically begin next week for us,” said Taylor. “We can’t wait for the challenge.”

Kickoff between the Knights and Tigers is set for 7:30 p.m. at Jack Peters Field on the campus of Robinson High School (6311 S. Lois Ave, Tampa 33616).