Finishing touches
Prep football: SCV teams preparing for final week of league play
Golden Valley and West Ranch don’t have a shot to lock up a playoff spot with a top-three finish in the Foothill League heading into their meeting Friday at Canyon to close out the regular season.
Even with a Saugus loss to Hart, the Centurions hold the tiebreaker over both teams due to head-to-head wins.
Both Golden Valley and West Ranch are within range of an at-large bid to the postseason, with both teams ranked in their respective CIF-Southern Section divisions. But a win to close out the season would certainly bring an extra sense of relief for either team’s playoff hopes.
Golden Valley (4-5, 1-3 Foothill League) was less than a minute away from pulling of a victory over Hart, until Da’Von Jones put the Indians ahead with 13 seconds left in the game with a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown.
The Grizzlies wildcat offense, featuring DeGabriel Floyd was firing on
all cylinders with Floyd throwing and rushing for touchdowns. Jalin Lewis hauled in Floyd’s passing touchdown and also added a rushing score.
More impressive, though, was the pressure the Grizzlies put on JT Shrout with C.J. Ravenell, who logged 2.5 sacks on the night and Derresse Morganfield, who had 2.5 tackles for a loss.
West Ranch (5-3, 1-3) has yet to find the win column since a victory over Canyon in its league opener. Weston Eget connected with Jovan Camacho for a 54-yard touchdown and rushed for a score in the loss.
The Wildcats have lost to Golden Valley the last two seasons but won the first nine meetings between the schools.
Trinity at Firebaugh, at Filmore High
Already competing in CIF-Southern Section Division 13, injuries to a plethora have derailed what looked to be a promising start to Trinity Clasical Academy’s season.
The Knights evened their record at 2-2 before dropping a close one to Santa Clarita Christian School (27-18) on Sept. 30.
But the loss to SCCS sent the Knights to a fivegame losing streak which they carry into their regular-season finale against Firebaugh on Friday at Fillmore High School.
Trinity was without Ryan DeMarois, Tyler Lee and Carson Campuzano in its 54-6 loss to Pasadena Poly two weeks ago and was still without DeMarois when it lost 40-14 to Rio Honda Prep last Friday.
Lee and Phineas Yi split time at quarterback last week, with Lee finding Yi for a 42-yard touchdown for the team’s only passing touchdown of the night. Lee also ran for a touchdown.
Campuzano hauled in eight passes for 48 yards in his return but a 14-point third quarter merely put a dent in Rio Honda Prep’s 26-0 halftime lead.
Firebaugh (2-7, 0-2) has had struggles of its own in the Prep League and opened league play with a 58-6 loss to Rio Honda Prep on Oct. 20.
Canyon at Valencia, 7 p.m.
The Cowboys experienced the thrill of a Foothill League victory last week for the first time this season, beating Saugus 35-31 in a backand-forth battle.
The emotions, however, will likely be fleeting as Canyon turns its attention to the Vikings, who clinched their ninth straight Foothill League crown in last week’s 6413 win over West Ranch.
Valencia has navigated each league team with ease, but they’ll need to focus on having a spotless performance tonight in order to prepare them for the long playoff road ahead of them.
“We had a couple turnovers early, some spots where we were a little sloppy and that kind of got me upset,” said Valencia coach Larry Muir after his team’s win over the Wildcats.
Jayvaun Wilson rushed for 85 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries last week. Four other running backs reached the end zone that night: Mykael Wright, Jake Santos, Luring Paialii and Tyler Haas.
Moises Haynes was out with injury for the game, but will play tonight.
Connor Downs added 251 passing yards and two touchdowns. He completed 11 of 16 passes.
Canyon’s run game remains its greatest asset, with Taylor Tepesano and Ryan Valdes splitting carries. Quarterback Shawn Gallagher adds an additional threat on the ground.
Tepesano rushed for three touchdowns, while Gallagher rushed for one and passed for another.
Hart vs. Saugus at COC, 7: 30 p.m.
The Indians have momentum on their side after a down-to-the-wire win over Golden Valley last week, while the Centurions had some energy diminished after a loss to Canyon.
Saugus (4-5, 2-2 in Foothill League) brings with it a strong defensive line that has been giving Foothill League offenses problems throughout the season. Giving quarterback JT Shrout the time he needs to make plays will be key for Hart (63, 3-1).
In his last outing, Shrout completed 13 of 30 passes for 305 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
Defensively, linebacker Julian Salazar is coming off a 13-tackle performance, while Trevor Laibl notched 12 tackles last time out.
The Cents will be relying on their ground game, which is spearheaded by Quinn Sheaffer. The senior is likely to reach the 1,000 milestone tonight, as he currently has 940 rushing yards.