Riordan’s wild victory sets up WCAL battle vs. Serra on Saturday
It was a game in which referees, scoreboard operators and stat keepers had trouble keeping up. Same for all the defensive players.
Host Riordan and Mitty exchanged yards and touchdowns at rapid-fire rate from the getgo, combining for 373 yards in the first quarter. The game was tied at 21 one play into the second quarter. It was 35-35 at halftime and 42-42 at the end of three before Riordan scored two unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter on the third and fourth rushing TDs from Charlie Johnson (24 carries, 217 yards).
Riordan (6-1, 4-0) pulled out a 56-42 West Catholic Athletic League barnburner, setting up a WCAL title-deciding tilt Saturday at Serra.
Considering the top-ranked Padres (7-0, 4-0) boast one of the best defenses seen around the Bay Area in recent memory — they’ve allowed 54 points all season (mostly late in lopsided wins) — Saturday’s 1:30 p.m. game figures to be more slugfest than track meet.
Riordan, utilizing a huge offensive line led by transfer tackles Peter Langi (6-foot-7, 350 pounds, from Mater Dei-Anaheim) and Tommy Tofi (6-7, 330), piled up 332 rushing yards and 500 total overall.
Sophomore quarterback Michael Mitchell Jr. (10-of-21, 168 yards, three TDs) had a pedestrian outing by his standards, but his favorite target, junior Chris Lawson (four catches, 114 yards) did not. The four-star recruit — he has 15 reported college offers including Oregon, Utah and Colorado — also had a 60-yard punt return for touchdown.
It all offset the 174 yards rushing on 16 carries by Mitty’s A.J. Cenizal and touchdown catches by Toju Maku, Caden Allard and Billy Hutton. The Monarchs had 420 total yards.
Mitchell, the WCAL Freshman of the Year in 2022, has been nearly flawless all season, completing 142-of-213 (66.7%) for 2,085 yards, 23 touchdowns and just three interceptions.
Lawson (40 catches, 648 yards, seven TDs) along with sophomore Cynai Thomas (32, 511, 5), Tyrone Jackson (18, 235, 5) and Judge Nash make up a tremendous receiving group to go along with game-breaking backs Johnson (61 carries, 507 yards, seven TDs), Jeremiah Jones (46, 372, 2) and freshman Isaiah Tuugamusu (34, 179, 8).
Riordan’s defense will need to play better against a Serra offense, which has found its rhythm in WCAL play while averaging 50.5 points per game.
De La Salle rallies: The streak is still alive. De La Salle-Concord stormed back from a 15point deficit with five minutes left in regulation to beat host San Ramon Valley-Danville 3327 in overtime Friday.
The Spartans (5-2) won on Derrick Blanche Jr.’s 6-yard touchdown run. De La Salle’s unbeaten streak against North Coast Section opponents is now at 266 games.
The Wolves (6-1), who outgained DLS 385-312, had a chance to win it in regulation but Austin Shelton, who had earlier field goals of 42 and 35 yards, missed on a 36-yard attempt with 5.1 seconds left.
San Ramon Valley coach Aaron Becker, whose team got 383 total yards from QB Luke Baker (179 on the ground), said the kick was partially tipped.
“Super proud of our young men and definitely the comeback in the fourth quarter,” Becker texted. “Our kicker is resilient, DLS got a hand up and deflected it so kudos to them. If we play them again, we definitely have some things to build on.”
De La Salle, led by defensive linemen Chris Biller (three sacks) and Matthew Johnson (two) and linebacker Colton Seastrand (11 tackles), sacked Baker five times. Blanche had 107 yards rushing and two touchdowns and QB Toa Faavae accounted for 160 yards and two scores.
Many San Ramon Valley fans had left when DLS ran off 21 straight points, including a pick-6 by Jayden Nicholas and 70-yard TD reception by Johnathan Guerrero.
“It was a pretty incredible atmosphere,” De La Salle coach Justin Alumbaugh said. “It was definitely the craziest end I’ve been a part of. It was just bananas.”