San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
ONE ‘INSANE’ COMEBACK BY NO. 1 MADISON
When No. 1-ranked Madison’s stunning, come-from-behind 15-12 win over No. 7 Granite Hills was complete Friday night, the Warhawks gathered with the cheerleaders in front of their fans. Players and cheerleaders celebrated raucously, capped by jumping jacks as they spelled out M-A-D-I-S-O-N. Hollered a fan: “That was insane.”
Here’s how insane the comeback was for the Warhawks (5-0). Madison came in averaging 39.5 points a game. But one play into the fourth quarter at home, Madison had yet to score, and Granite Hills led 12-0.
The comeback was sparked by a running back who came into the game with one carry. After Granite Hills scored a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, junior Jaylon Brown returned the ensuing kickoff 49 yards to the 50.
After catching his breath on the sideline, Brown sidled up next to head coach Rick Jackson and said, “Can I get one?” … as in, a turn carrying the football.
To which Jackson replied, “Yeah, go ahead.”
To that point, Madison’s other backs had 94 carries on the season. Brown had one. But Jackson went with his gut and it paid off. On his second carry of the game, Brown burst up the middle, broke a tackle and scored from 25 yards out. Before that, Madison had failed to score on five trips into Granite Hills’ territory, including two inside the 10.
“We needed just to get one in there,” said Jackson. “You go that long without scoring, you start to kind of feel that pressure a little bit.” Madison halted Granite Hills (4-2) on its next drive, stopping a fourth-and-1 at the Madison 13. The Warhawks then drove 87 yards in 11 plays with James Tivao scoring from 2 yards out with 2:36 to play. Titus Toilolo intercepted a pass to clinch the win.
The biggest takeaway, though, may have been that Granite Hills, which has yet to win a section title, established itself as the team to beat in Division II.
“In the long run,” said Eagles coach Kellan Cobbs, “I think our defense showed we’re one of the best in the county.”
Top 10 Fared
No. 2 Lincoln 42, Bakersfield Garces Memorial 16: Roderick Robinson gained 188 yards on 13 carries and scored four TDS, three rushing, one receiving for Lincoln (5-1). QB Kalamo Chatham threw for 210 yards and four TDS. Raylon Logan caught four passes for 50 yards and two scores. No. 3 Carlsbad 27, Bakersfield Liberty 0: TE Zack Marshall played his first game for Carlsbad (4-1) since his transfer from Santa Fe Christian and made an immediate impact. The Michigan commit caught a TD pass from QB Julian Sayin and threw a TD pass to WR Justin Johnson. Sayin also threw a TD pass to Johnson. Tyler Prasuhn had a pair of FGS, including a 42-yarder. Liberty, ranked No. 21 in the state by Maxpreps, falls to 3-2.
No. 4 Cathedral Catholic 35, Steele Canyon 3: Marcus Ratcliffe returned the opening kickoff 85 yards for a TD. William Alexander had a 52yard TD reception from Jack Stevens in the first quarter and the pair connected for a 24yard TD later. Will Bond had a 30-yard TD run for Cathedral Catholic (3-3). Steele Canyon is 1-5.
No. 5 Helix 38, Anaheim Servite 31: Servite led 14-0 in the first quarter but Helix (5-1) led 35-21 at halftime. Kevin Allen III had three rushing TDS for the Highlanders in the first half, giving him six in the last two games. Jason Sisneros had a 40-yard score to get Helix started, then had a 4-yard TD later in the first period. Jirah Savaiinaea had an interception. Servite (1-4) was ranked No. 31 in the state by Maxpreps.
No. 6 Poway had a bye.
No. 8 La Costa Canyon had a bye.
No. 9 Mater Dei Catholic 44, St. Augustine 0: QB Dominic Nankil threw three TDS, completing 18 of 23 passes for 285 yards for Mater Dei Catholic (1-4). Jaylen Hall had four receptions for 102 yards and two TDS, and Jerry Mcclure had two catches for 75 yards and a TD to lead the Crusaders’ receivers. Anthony Lopez had nine tackles and had an interception while Vincent Friend added six tackles, two of which were for a loss against St. Augustine (2-3). No. 10 Mira Mesa 42, Grossmont 0: Makei Thompson rushed for 110 yards on 16 carries and scored three TDS for Mira Mesa (4-1). He had another 75 yards receiving and returning punts. Tyson Line completed 12 of 18 passes for 200 yards and three TDS, including two to Chris Brown, who had six catches for 113 yards. Chance Bell had a 33-yard TD reception. Micah Vanta and Nyjerion Casey both had a pair of sacks for the Marauders. Grossmont is 0-6.
Elsewhere
Grossmont Valley League Santana 35, Mount Miguel 24: Nick Leger rushed for two TDS and caught a pass for a TD to lead Santana (2-4, 2-0), which trailed 17-7 at halftime. Isaiah Lloyd had two sacks for the Sultans. Jeremiah Castillo had TD receptions of 23 and 69 yards from QB Matthew Barton, who also ran for a score, for Mount Miguel (2-4, 0-2). The win for Santana head coach Tim Estes was the 57th of his career, tying him for the most in school history with Dave Gross (2000-11).
El Cajon Valley 37, Monte Vista 8: QB Darick Dubose passed for two TDS to Paris Dixon in the first half and had a 65-yard TD run in the second half for El Cajon Valley (2-4, 1-1). Daelin Richardson had a long TD run on the first play from scrimmage for the Braves. Kal-el Gordon had a 50-yard run. Chris Cosio added an interception. Jason Triplett scored the TD for Monte Vista (1-4, 0-1) on a pass from Adrian Gonzalez. West Hills 42, Valhalla 14: West Hills (4-2, 2-0) remained unbeaten in league play. Valhalla falls to 0-6, 0-2.
Nonleague
Mt. Carmel 38, Rancho Buena Vista 7: QB Joshua Bell had the best game of his career, completing 18 of 35 passes for 338 yards and four TDS as Mt. Carmel (4-1) posted an impressive win over previously unbeaten Rancho Buena Vista (5-1). Conor Bananal had four catches for 94 yards and a pair of 33-yard TDS. The defense had four sacks, two by Eddy Villa and one each for Gabe Littrel and Ronald Pearcy. RBV scored on a 67yard pass from David Salas to Jayden Briscoe.
Army-navy 38, Mountain Empire 0: Led again by its defense, Army-navy improved to 5-1 with all five wins by shutout. Luke Farr had four tackles for loss and Ratumana Bulabalavu had 11⁄2 sacks and 3 TFL. Landon Schrom had five tackles and two pass receptions. QB Carlos Ramirez completed all nine of his passes for 119 yards and a TD. Jonah Tau rushed six times for 79 yards and two TDS. The Warriors have outscored their opponents 192-13. Mountain Empire is 2-3.
Montgomery 42, Castle Park 7: Isaac Cervantes rushed for 208 yards on 23 carries and scored once as Montgomery (5-1) captured its fifth straight. QB Diego Cervantes was 8 of 9 passing for 171 yards and three TDS while LB Victor Flores led the defense with a 33-yard interception TD and five tackles. Castle Park (1-4) was led by QB Dillan Villareal, who accounted for 115 total yards, 93 passing.
Southwest-san Diego 40, O’farrell Charter 0: Nery Gomez carried six times but gained 166 yards, scoring once for Southwest (4-2). QB Sebastian Plascencia completed 2 of 4 passes for 105 yards, but both went for TDS. Jaylen Garcia broke loose for an 85-yard TD run for the
Raiders. O’farrell is 0-6.
Bonita Vista 38, Vincent Memorial 35: Soccer player Daniel Ugarte kicked a 39-yard FG with five minutes to play as Bonita Vista (2-3) handed Vincent Memorial (4-1) its first loss of the season. Caden Ada rushed for 151 yards on 14 carries, including a 22-yard TD for Bonita Vista. Landen Wales and Marcos Pena each had an interception for the Barons.
Oakley Freedom 46, Eastlake 28: The road trip to Oakley, located in the San Francisco Bay Area, resulted in a record sixth straight setback for Eastlake (0-6), which has been decimated by injuries while playing a challenging schedule. Freedom evened its record at 2-2.
University City 49, Bishop’s 46: Backup QB Quentyn Demara’s 78-yard TD pass to Dreyden Gardner erased the only lead by Bishop’s (3-2) with 39.8 seconds to play to rally University City (3-2). It was the only pass Demara threw. Bishop’s QB Will Fiero was 23 for 28 for 301 yards. Fiero rushed for three TDS and threw for one. Ray Thornton caught nine passes for 163 yards.
Santa Fe Christian 20, Escondido Charter 13: RB Jeremy Love rushed for 127 yards on 12 attempts, including TD runs of 27 and 38 yards as Santa Fe Christian (5-1) rallied to defeat Escondido Charter (4-1). Chuck Sawyer had a TD and an interception for SFC and Luke Heggie had a fourthdown stop on the final play of the game. SFC’S defense was led by DB Carson Keller, who had four tackles, two pass deflections and an interception. Skylar Macmahon hit John Scates for a 30-yard TD for Escondido Charter.
Escondido 38, Hilltop 17: Xavier Terrazas scored three times for Escondido (3-3) and David Flores returned an interception for a TD. Hilltop falls to 3-3.
Francis Parker 49, Orange Glen 14: Chris Williams rushed for four TDS — 3, 7, 11 and 26 yards — and caught a 48-yard TD pass from QB Jackson Giek for Parker (2-3). Williams, who also had a 2-point PAT, accounted for 203 total yards — 66 passing, 89 rushing and 48 receiving. Joel Spencer had two sacks for the Lancers and D’angelo Robinson had a sack, a fumble recovery and forced a fumble. Orange Glen (0-5) QB Amari Washington threw for 181 yards with a pair of TD passes to Aiden Gomez, who had three catches for 117 yards.
Chula Vista 19, Sweetwater 6:
Paul Alvarez rushed for 127 yards and TDS of 7 and 25 yards as Chula Vista (2-4) made it two straight wins. The defense was led by Frankie Olmedo, who had 10 tackles, and Mathew Robertson, who had 12 tackles. Sweetwater (3-3) got a 1-yard TD from Carlos Delgado.
Crawford 45, San Ysidro 6:
Hamadi Sharif rushed 12 times for 169 yards and four TDS for Crawford (4-1). Abdulahi Sharif scored on a 93-yard kickoff return and Gavin Nguyen hit Tre’von Blanks with a 28-yard scoring pass. San Ysidro (2-4) was led by A.j.logan who had 13 tackles, three passes deflected and an interception. Crawford outgained San Ysidro 330-103.
Brawley 21, Fallbrook 17:
Tanner Carranza rushed for TDS of 4 and 5 yards, the second of which proved to be the game-winner as Brawley (3-2) knocked off host Fallbrook (4-2). Ethan Gutierrez found Donnell Mehkye for a 67-yd TD pass for the Wildcats. Chris Baush had a 53yard TD run for Fallbrook and finished with 21 carries for 127 yards. Teammate Alan Leon had an 8-yard TD run for a 17-14 lead.
Patrick Henry 45, Morse 36:
Malachi Ghitman was 17 of 24 for 314 yards and passed for five TDS for Patrick Henry (2-2), including three to Hassan Noureddine. Vincent Lee hauled in a 40-yard TD pass for Henry. Alex Needham had seven catches for 103 yards and intercepted a pass. Kory Symington forced a fumble and recovered a fumble. Johnny Mosti threw for 373 yards and four TDS for Morse (4-2), including two scores to Aleonte Logan. Mosti threw a 27-yard TD pass to Jeremiah Barton.
Hoover 57, Maranatha Christian 26: Sir Autry racked up 206 yards on 21 carries and scored a TD for Hoover (3-2). Kaleb Ryan had 10 carries for 101 yards and three TDS. Daniel Flores had four sacks and recovered a fumble. Exavier Williams returned a kickoff for 90 yards for a score and another 86 yards. Maranatha falls to 2-4.
San Diego 33, Kearny 21: Curtis Rodgers scored three TDS for San Diego (3-3), which overcame a 21-9 deficit. Skyler Austin returned an interception 20 yards for a TD. For Kearny (3-2), QB Brodie Stump broke his collarbone in the second quarter and is out for the season. He completed 13 of 17 passes for 163 yards and three TDS. Isaiah Sutton caught five passes for 89 yards and a TD.
Clairemont 32, Calipatria 8: Luke Landerer and Robert Vilchis scored two rushing TDS each for Clairemont (3-3). Bobby Flint and Diego Pereyra intercepted passes. Calipatria is 0-5.
Scripps Ranch 38, Canyon Hills 19: RB Ryan Stadherr scored four TDS, rushing for 134 yards on 17 carries for Scripps (2-4). Rowen Wimmer completed 21 of 28 passes for 252 yards and a TD. For Canyon Hills (1-3), QB Cassius Campbell passed for two TDS and ran for one.
Mission Bay 48, Holtville 30: A week after being held to six points in its lone loss, Mission Bay (5-1) erupted offensively. Holtville is 3-3.
Point Loma 49, La Jolla 0: Ina rivalry that dates to 1926, Point Loma (5-1) registered its most lopsided win ever over the Vikings (3-3). Chase Lowary scored two rushing TDS and returned an interception for a TD.
Also
Palo Verde Valley 47, Barstow 28 Imperial 18, Yuma Gila Ridge 8 Classical Academy 42, Tri-city Christian 0
Imperial Valley League
Central Union 48, Southwestel Centro 7
8-Man Results
Foothills Christian 34, San Diego Jewish Academy 20 Victory Christian 62, Horizon Prep 12
Coastal Academy 48, Ocean View Christian 20 Calvin Christian 57, Warner 8 Rock Academy 48, San Pasqual Academy 34 Borrego Springs 42, West Shores 0
St. Joseph Academy 32, Wildomar California Lutheran 22
Norcross is a freelance writer. Staff writer John Maffei and freelance writers Terry Monahan, Steve Brand, Ramon Scott, Adam Paul and Rick Hoff contributed to this report.