SD Prep Sports: Football

www.geocities.com/sdprepsports

E-mail us at sdprepsports@aol.com

Home   Swimming/Diving   Cross Country  Track & Field   Roller Hockey   Water Polo   CIF Scorecard

Titans out-defend Grossmont to take 7-3 win

San Diego Section 2K5 Scoreboard

San Diego Section 2K5 Standings: The Undefeated

By Phillip Brents

Posted Sept. 9, 2005

Photo: Eastlake's Luc Ruiz takes down Grossmont QB Charlie Piro for a sack in second-half action.

CHULA VISTA -- As the seconds ticked down in the third quarter of Eastlake High’s non-league game against visiting Grossmont last Friday, one got the distinct impression that one touchdown would indeed be enough to give the Titans their first win of the season.

When Cory Moody made intercepted Charlie Piro’s pass on the seven-yard line with under eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, that prediction was sealed as Eastlake’s defense once again showcased itself in the Titans’ 7-3 victory against the Foothillers.

In two games, Eastlake (1-1) has allowed 13 points – two field goals and a touchdown. The Titans led 9-0 before being edged 10-9 by defending San Diego Section Division II champion Oceanside in the team’s season opener on Sept. 2. Defense indeed looks to be the key operating word for Eastlake this season.

But it was a flash of much-needed offense that provided the winning margin against Grossmont (0-1). Sophomore quarterback Derek Witte passed 69 yards to Stephen Carr on the Titans’ first play from scrimmage to catch the Foothillers by surprise. Carr came down with the ball at the Grossmont four-yard line. Two plays later, Carr was in the end zone and, following a successful point-after touchdown kick by Daniel Ortega, Eastlake held a 7-0 lead.

The Foothillers, who lost an overtime matchup against Helix in last year's San Diego Section Division II semifinals, scored on a 44-yard field goal by Marcus Flores in the waning moments of the first quarter. The Grossmont defense, which stood out play after play as well throughout the contest, set up the score on an interception by Nick Sobel.

But the teams traded drives and turnovers from there on, with the defenses of both teams rising to the proverbial occasion when needed.

Jeff Waters led Grossmont’s rushers with 37 yards at halftime, with teammate Alton Berry gaining 25 yards and Augie Williams rushing seven times for 18 yards against a very stingy Titan defense.

Berry had a nice punt return to set up the Hillers in Eastlake territory with 6:26 left in the game but the Titan defense shut down the Grossmont offensive unit.

West Hills 13, Steele Canyon 3

West Hills awarded head coach Steve Sutton his 100^th coaching victory. The Wolf Pack did all of its scoring in the game’s final five minutes to erase a 3-0 Cougar lead in a game dominated by defense. Philip Staback passed 10 yards to Daniel Craig for the go-ahead touchdown and West Hills capitalized on an ensuing interception by Eric Fiege to set up Staback for a one-yard scoring run in the contest’s final two minutes.

Steele Canyon received its points in the game off the leg of Ricky Araiza, who kicked a 47-yard field goal to give the Cougars their 3-0 halftime lead.

For Steele Canyon, which fell to 0-2 following losses to two quality opponents, defense was the name of the game. A pair of pickoffs by Tony Smith halted two first-half West Hills scoring drives. Overall, Steele Canyon’s defense allowed 228 yards.

Raleigh Sevier led the defending Grossmont North League champion Wolf Pack with 83 rushing yards on 12 carries while Staback passed for 96 yards by completing 13 of 27 passes. West Hills, which also defeated Steele Canyon for the first time in three tries, won with offense in its season-opener as Staback completed 14 of 16 passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns.

Steele Canyon has lost its two games by a total of 14 points, including a 14-10 season-opening setback to Cathedral Catholic.

The Sultans improved to 2-0 at the expense of the host Eagles, who expected to field a much improved team than the one that finished 1-9 a year ago. In making its season opener, Granite Hills held Santana -- which finished 6-4 last season -- to a scoreless tie until three minutes remained in the game. Chris Diaz, who scored twice in the Sultans’ 27-0 season-opening win against Montgomery, scored the game-winning touchdown on a one-yard run.

Granite Hills limited Santana to 162 total offensive yards while recording three quarterback sacks (two by Justin Johnson). The Eagles were led by Cullen Hayes’ 84 rushing yards against the Sultans, who were keyed defensively by Blake Kahler and Jacob Anangnosastopolis.

Santana, which started 5-0 last year, have outscored their two season-opening foes by a combined margin of 34-0.

Abraham Muheize, working out of the deep shotgun position, completed 24 of 35 passes for 298 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Braves to their impressive 2-0 start. Muheize also collected 99 rushing yards and two touchdowns to have a hand in all seven El Cajon Valley scores.Clifton Thomas caught three of Muheize’s scoring passes. Muheize also tossed touchdown passes to Jeremy Young and Nate Schad. The Braves built up a 42-0 halftime lead against the winless Aztecs while making four interceptions on defense.

Garen Demery rushed for 198 yards and scored three touchdowns as the Norsemen racked up 480 offensive yards in the blowout win against the host Spartans. Tomas Karagianes threw a 72-yard touchdown pass to Jonathan Murray to open scoring in the game and Nick Ruiz later recovered a fumble and ran 38 yards for the team’s second score. Spencer Meyers led Valhalla with 88 rushing yards while Gabe Cruz (15 tackles) and Sam Bauchmann (14 tackles) keyed the Norsemen defense.

Despite losing by 25 points, there were several bright spots for the Spartans. Quarterback Josh Goldilla completed nine of 16 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns while Anthony Lattin made six catches for 168 yards and two scores.

The Vaqueros doubled their win total of all last season by defeating the host Bulldogs (0-2) with the aid of a school-record 343 passing yards from junior quarterback Ryan Lindley. A.J. Conti caught 10 passes, including two for scores, while Shawn Callen had one touchdown reception. Ryan Inverso was credited with 141 receiving yards in the game.

The 2-0 start was the first for El Capitan since 1994. The Vaqueros, who trounced Serra 41-8 in their season opener, came back from a 14-13 deficit to score the win against Ramona, which received touchdowns from Kevin Lloyd and James Meador.

The host Fallbrook Warriors, who look to return to preeminence this season,  victimized the Division II runner-up Helix Highlanders with second-half sacks and turnovers. The Warriors, who defeated Helix for the first time since 2001, opened the game on an ominous note when Alderez Siaton scored on a 62-yard run on Fallbrook’s first play from scrimmage. In all, the Warriors (who are graced this season with 40 seniors in the lineup) received touchdowns from five different players, plus a pair of field goals from Rob Taft. Jericho Toilolo threw a 25-yard scoring pass to lead the Highlanders to their lone score of the night. Linebacker Nolan Hamblen (6-2, 210), who ranks among the top five tackles leaders in the section, helped key Fallbrook's defense.

Castle Park matched the visiting Falcons with a touchdown in the opening quarter of play but defending San Diego Section Division I co-champion Torrey Pines completed scoring in the contest with a 12-yard pass from quarterback Hunter Wanket to Cooper Stephenson in the second quarter for a 14-6 halftime lead and tacked on a 67-yard scoring play from Wanket to Scooter Belasco in the final quarter to wrap up the victory. Belasco scored the Falcons’ opening TD on a 39-yard pass from Wanket, who finished the high-profile matchup with three touchdown throws.

Boogie Blossom scored on a 31-yard run to bring the Trojans to within 7-6 on the scoreboard. Martin Bayless Jr. made his 2005 varsity debut with six catches for 41 yards for Castle Park.

Sweetwater 24, Morse 24

The Sweetwater Red Devils have undergone quite an odyssey to kick off the 2005 high school football season. The team’s bus broke down on the way to Calexico for its season opener, with the team arriving more than an hour after the scheduled start-time. Thus an asterisk needs to be placed besides Sweetwater’s 31-7 loss to Calexico on Sept. 2. So did the real Red Devils show up for Friday’s home opener against long-time rival Morse?  In a battle of two playoff entrants in 2004, Sweetwater had a chance to defeat the visiting Tigers — a program that in the past has served as a measuring stick for excellence in the section — but a missed field goal attempt and four botched extra-point conversions forced the National City school to settle for a 24-24 draw.

The Red Devils opened scoring in the game as Roy Flores ran the ball in from six yards. The visiting Tigers countered with three unanswered touchdowns to lead 21-12 at halftime but could only muster a third-quarter field goal the rest of the game as host SuHi tacked on 12 second-half points for the 24-all tie. Flores passed for another touchdown (12 yards to Emil Vanta) while Lathario Hoffman scored the Devils’ game-tying touchdown. Hoffman rushed 24 times for 153 yards to key the Sweetwater running game while Fernando Hernandez caught six passes for 103 yards to highlight the team’s aerial attack. On defense for the Devils, Edgar Martinez contributed 12 tackles, one fumble recovery and one pass deflection.

Sweetwater actually was in position to win the game but missed two extra-point conversions and failed on a pair of two-point runs. State discus champion Darius Savage, who doubles as a 320-pound lineman for Morse, blocked the extra-point attempt on the Devils’ final score of the game, which came with four minutes left in the fourth quarter. Esteban Sanchez lined up for a potential game-winning 37-yard field goal for SuHi in the game’s dying seconds but the kick missed.

Chris Harris put the Tigers on the scoreboard via an electrifying 99-yard kick-off return. Morse quarterback James Santos then passed for one score while rushing for another to propel the visitors to their early lead. Sweetwater coach Tony Garcia credited center Angel Garcia with a strong effort in dealing with Savage throughout the game. Garcia termed the tie game between neighborhood rivals a "winning effort."

Otay Ranch 44, University City 3

Chris Siddens threw for two touchdowns while also running for a pair of scores to lead the Mustangs to a 2-0 start. Siddens finished with 156 rushing yards on 11 carries while completing scoring passes of 43 and 47 yards to Larry Daniels. Robert McCurdy helped break open the game with a 61-yard scoring run in the first quarter as Otay Ranch assumed command early with a 20-3 lead. Mustang kicker Brian Lewis was kept busy on the afternoon with five successful PAT conversions and a 46-yard field goal.

San Ysidro 63, St. Genevieve (Panorama City) 19

The Cougars picked up their first win of the season in a big way by defeating St. Genevieve of Panorama City, 63-19. Manny Padilla, Phillip Hoy and Sam Robinson each scored three touchdowns to lead San Ysidro, which blew the game open with a 35-point third-quarter explosion. Robinson scored on runs of 65 and 70 yards while also returning an intercepted pass 57 yards for a score. Hoy ripped off runs of 53 and 46 yards while adding a 95-yard kickoff return for another touchdown. Padilla scored on a pair of short runs while returning a picked-off pass 73 yards for a touchdown. The Cougars led 21-0 at halftime.

The Crusaders kicked off their season with the loss against visiting Oceanside, the reigning San Diego Section Division II champions. Marian Catholic's lone score of the game came on a 61-yard run in the third quarter after the Pirates had taken a 17-0 halftime lead. The Crusaders could not maintain the momentum, however, as Oceanside’s Mario Gonzales scored twice more. Gonzales finished the game with four touchdowns and 216 rushing yards.

The Mariners toppled Kearny in comeback fashion as Marvin Moss scored two rushing touchdowns and Aaron Mason added another rushing score to highlight 18 straight unanswered points by the visiting Mariners.

Coronado 45, Southwest 0

Coronado topped Southwest as Michael Baker-Denson rushed for four touchdowns and Will Purvis scored on a 66-yard interception return. Southwest, which is rebuilding from the loss of 20 seniors, gave up a 21-point third-quarter to the Islanders after trailing 17-0 at halftime.

Escondido 45, Hilltop 3

David Mendoza scored five touchdowns to lead the visiting Cougars against the Lancers (1-1).

St. Augustine 47, Madison 19

Madison allowed St. Augustine quarterback Chris Forcier to pass for 150 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing 12 times for 116 yards. In its two games, Madison (which finished in a three-way tie for last year’s Harbor League championship) has been outscored 83-33.