Defense paces gritty victory
In the first postgame talk to his players as the head football coach at Monte Vista High, Matt Russi had to remind them to smile.
The Mustangs had just gritted out a 13-7 road win over Deer Valley-Antioch in both teams’ season opener, but it was rarely pretty.
“It’s not how, but how many,” Russi told the team right before he was was drenched by the remains of the Gatorade bucket.
The team then broke the huddle by shouting, “Russi Era!”
Russi, a Monte Vista alum who had a four-year playing career at Cal, returned to the Danville campus prior to the 2016 season to serve as defensive coordinator and strength and conditioning coach. He took over the head coaching job this spring after Craig Bergman stepped down after two decades at the helm.
Not surprisingly it was Russi’s defense that shined brightest in the victory. Led by Zane Cribb’s three interceptions, the Mustangs forced four secondhalf turnovers and allowed just seven points despite Deer Valley being in Monte Vista territory on six of its eight secondhalf possessions.
“We wanted to make them sustain drives, and we forced them into making mistakes,” Russi said. Deer Valley “did a good job. They battled the whole way.”
Monte Vista took a 13-0 halftime lead on two second-quarter touchdown passes by sophomore quarterback Jack Stewardson. He threw a 29-yard scoring pass to Ryan Colonna and a 20-yard strike to Cribb, who also had a game-high 117 yards rushing on 21 carries.
Deer Valley cut the lead to 13-7 on a 27-yard pass from Joshua Scott to Dior Walker with just under six minutes left in the game.
Bergman, who stayed on staff as the quarterbacks coach, stepped aside as head coach after compiling 149 wins over a 20-year tenure. The Mustangs won three North Coast Section titles under Bergman.
Monte Vista defeated Deer Valley 49-7 in last season’s opener, the first of nine straight wins. Deer Valley closed its 2016 campaign on an eightgame losing streak.
Deer Valley is seeking its first winning season since going 11-2 in 2013.