Lakewood Ranch lost to Dunnellon 14-13 on Friday, Sept. 18, dropping the Mustangs to 2-3 and extending their losing streak to three games.

The defeat came against a Tigers squad coached by J.B. Bynum that improved to 5-0, according to Your Observer sports reporter Jack Nelson. Nelson's coverage pictured senior running back Elidrick Berry in the loss, though individual game statistics were not available.

Berry's absence looms over the offense

Berry entered the season as Lakewood Ranch's top returning rusher and the player the Mustangs could least afford to lose. As a junior in 2025, he rushed for 886 yards and nine touchdowns on 6.7 yards per carry, according to Your Observer's preseason coverage. He led the team with 991 all-purpose yards and averaged a team-best 17.5 yards per catch. The preseason report described Berry as having "the tools of a 1,000-yard rusher."

Berry's production carries extra weight because of Lakewood Ranch's limited passing attack. Quarterbacks Brett Traver and Sebastian Engel combined for just 650 passing yards in 2025, making the ground game the engine of Head Coach Scott Paravicini's offense.

Three straight losses extend the skid

The skid started Sept. 4 when Braden River beat Lakewood Ranch 39-28 in Week 3, ending a 2-0 start to the season. Riverview Sarasota then shut out the Mustangs 46-0 on Thursday, Sept. 10, a lopsided conference loss that knocked Lakewood Ranch out of the Herald-Tribune's area top-10 rankings.

The one-point margin against Dunnellon was closer than either of those defeats, but the result was the same. In 2025, the Mustangs averaged 20.4 points per game and were held to 10 or fewer points five times. Scoring 13 against an unbeaten opponent suggests the offense still struggles to sustain drives when it matters most.

Season opened with promise in August

The season opened with promise. Lakewood Ranch beat Parrish Community 27-14 on the road Aug. 21 and won again in Week 2 before the slide began.

Paravicini's squad faces a Week 6 road trip to North Port on Friday, Sept. 25, at 7:30 p.m. The Bobcats enter at 1-4 after a 37-6 loss to Braden River on Sept. 18.