The most important winning streak for Lakeland remained alive Friday night, but as has been typical for the Dreadnaughts this year, they made it harder than it needed to be.

Lakeland's 31-17 victory over Brandon should have been clinched long before T.K. Lamb ran in for the final touchdown with 3:33 left in the Class 5A, Region 2 quarterfinal game at E.F. McLane Stadium. The No. 3 Dreadnaughts now take their 16-game playoff winning streak to Kissimmee Osceola for a rematch Nov. 23.

Penalties kept two scoring drives alive for the Eagles that resulted in 10 points, and a Lakeland turnover at the Brandon 12 prevented the Dreadnaughts (10-1) from going up 17 points in the third quarter.

"We never do anything easy this year it seems,'' Lakeland coach Bill Castle said. "We still do some foolish things. But this time of year, you win it and move on. You have to look forward."

In the end, it was the Dreadnaughts' running game that allowed them to overcome any of the "foolish things" they did. Jason Guzman surpassed 1,000 yards for the season with 157 yards on just 11 carries. His 56-yard run on the first play of the second half set up Lamb's second touchdown of the game and put Lakeland up, 24-14.

Lakeland finished with 363 yards rushing, all of it coming after Jerrod Haggins completed a 20-yard pass on the Dreadnaughts' first play of the game for their only passing yards of the night.

"They blitz a lot, so we didn't want to get into throwing too much," Castle said.

After Lamb's touchdown, Lakeland recovered a fumble at the Brandon 48 and had the chance to take a commanding lead. Lamb, who rushed for 63 yards on 12 carries, had a 29-yard run to the 11, but Lakeland fumbled on the next play.

Brandon then answered with a 13-play drive that began at its own 12. The Dreadnaughts stopped Marquel Gilmore for a 2-yard loss on third-and-10 at the Lakeland 29, but a facemask penalty and a personal foul against Lakeland gave Brandon first-and-10 at the 13. The Dreadnaughts' defense eventualy forced a 34-yard Brad Keefe field goal that made it a seven-point game.

Lakeland came back with a 70-yard scoring drive, capped by Lamb's third touchdown, but had to overcome a 10-yard and a 15-yard penalty on back-to-back plays then convert a fourth-and-6 - Haggins scrambled for 19 yards - to set up the touchdown.

Lakeland penalties on fourth-and-5 (offsides) and third-and-8 (personal foul) after a stop kept Brandon's second touchown drive alive in the first half, giving them a short-lived 14-10 lead.

Javaris McRoy's 70-yard touchdown run with 2:47 left in the half put Lakeland on top for good.