FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — There was plenty at stake in this early-season matchup between two defending state champions.

No. 7 West Boca Raton made the trip south to Bill Laurie Stadium to take on No. 4 American Heritage, with both teams ranked among the top 40 nationally.

The game was physical from the start, with American Heritage giving West Boca little room to work.

But midway through the first quarter, the Bulls found their rhythm.

Trey Moran aired it out 40 yards to Laonte Davis for a touchdown, putting West Boca up 7-0.

The Moran-to-Davis connection kept working all night. The Bulls took a 14-0 lead into halftime and stayed in control from there.

American Heritage finally picked up its first first down of the game in the third quarter and eventually found the end zone to cut into the deficit.

But the Bulls were too much for a short-handed Patriots team, pulling away for a 24-7 win.

American Heritage coach Mike Smith said the message to his team after the loss was simple.

“Let’s go back to work,” Smith said.

“That’s always been the message,” he said. “Even last year when we struggled, and the year before that, you just go back to work. That’s all you can do.”

Smith gave West Boca Raton credit while pointing to the small mistakes that hurt his team.

“That’s a good team. Gotta give them a lot of credit, but we killed ourselves with a lot of the little things,” he said.

For the Patriots, it’s back to work in Plantation.

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