Welcome to the Bay Area News Group (Mercury News & East Bay Times) roundup of the best action in high school football from the second weekend of the fall season. Check back every Saturday for scores, highlights and top performers from the weekend’s games, updated throughout the day.
Ranked teams
No. 8 St. Francis 31, No. 1 De La Salle 28
De La Salle’s 30-year unbeaten streak against California schools north of the Fresno area ended as Nicolas Andrighetto caught a 16-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Dougherty Jr. with 16.7 seconds left. Read Darren Sabedra’s story about the epic outcome here.
No. 3 Pittsburg 42, No. 5 Valley Christian 20
Khai Taylor intercepted three passes and Charles Brown Jr. rushed for 217 yards and three touchdowns as Pittsburg rolled on its home field in this Top 5 matchup. Read Evan Webeck’s recap here.
Central Catholic-Modesto 21, No. 4 San Ramon Valley 14
A holding penalty and a questionable fumble didn’t go San Ramon Valley’s way in a tight road loss against Modesto power Central Catholic on Thursday. Read Mike Lefkow’s recap here.
No. 7 Los Gatos 35, Live Oak 7
Los Gatos hit the road for the third time this season, and for a third time, the Wildcats’ bus ride back to campus was a happy one. Live Oak kept it even through the first quarter but couldn’t keep up from there on. The Wildcats got into the end zone three times in the second quarter to take a 21-0 lead into halftime; they didn’t allow the Acorns to reach the paydirt until the final quarter. Los Gatos hosts Half Moon Bay next Friday in its final tuneup before its SCVAL opener against Wilcox, a game that decided the league title last spring. — Evan Webeck
No. 9 California 70, Freedom 20
QB Teddy Booras threw five touchdown passes, including four to receiver Jake Calcagno, as California (3-0) scored touchdowns on 10 of its 11 offensive possessions to rout host Freedom (1-2) on its homecoming night. Read Curtis Pashelka’s report here.
No. 10 Benicia 61, Carrillo 6
Benicia led 48-0 at the half while improving to 2-0 on the season. Quarterback Tyson Wallace threw three touchdown passes and ran for a fourth score. Miles Bailey, the Panthers’ 6-foot-4, 260-pound tight end/defensive end, caught a 37-yard touchdown pass and also ran 8 yards after recovering a fumble for six more points. Simeon Harris had a 20-yard TD catch, but his most electrifying play was a 91-yard kickoff return that he took to the house. Benicia, which has won its first two games by a combined score of 123-12, should face a little stiffer test next Friday when it hosts Moreau Catholic. — Mike Lefkow
Vanden 34, No. 21 Foothill 20
In a matchup of unbeaten teams, Vanden sprinted to a 21-0 lead midway through the second quarter and never looked back. Foothill, which entered the game 2-0, never got closer than two scores after Vanden’s fast start. The visitors improved to 4-0. “They put a lot of pressure on our quarterback, and they have tremendous skill players,” Foothill coach Greg Haubner said. Even in defeat, Falcons quarterback Nick Walsh had another good game, throwing for approximately 300 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman Chris Lawson caught one of the TDs, and Kenny Olson grabbed the other two. Walsh has now passed for 12 touchdowns. Next up for Foothill is a home game against Freedom next Friday. — Mike Lefkow
No. 23 Amador Valley 7, No. 22 Dublin 0
Jackson Ogoilin was the only player to pierce the end zone, from 4 yards out in the second quarter, in a defensive battle that left both teams feeling good about themselves. Read Jerry McDonald’s report here.
PREP FOOTBALL WEEK 3 COVERAGE
East Bay
Granada 30, Castro Valley 6
The visiting Matadors (1-2) led 9-0 after the first quarter and didn’t look back, forging to a 23-0 lead in the third quarter. Eric Hall scored on a 65-yard run in that quarter for Granada, following teammate Kekoa Barcinas’ 60-yard TD reception in the first quarter. Barcinas also had an interception. Joey Keeler had five sacks for the Matadors. Castro Valley fell to 0-3. — Phil Jensen
Las Lomas 45, Northgate 22
The battle of Walnut Creek was won by the Knights for the third time in four years. The archrivals didn’t play last season. Las Lomas (2-1) led 24-7 at the half. Diamond Loosli connected on three touchdown passes, two to 6-foot-3, 195-pound senior Jabre Bevineau. Emmanuel Karnley also caught a touchdown for Las Lomas. Johnny Walker ran the ball for two scores. Las Lomas has been playing without top running backs Jermaine Land and Frank Payne, but both could be back shortly, coach Doug Longero said. Land has been sidelined by a stress fracture in his foot. Payne has a quad injury. Northgate (1-1) will look to get back on track when it hosts Bethel next Friday. — Mike Lefkow
South Bay/Peninsula
The King’s Academy 20, Homestead 19
Homestead came a missed extra-point away from at least forcing overtime, but The King’s Academy’s rushing attack prevailed for its first win in three tries this season. Sophomore Jeaden Underwood led the way with 177 of the Knights’ 280 yards on the ground, while freshman QB Reed Black ran for two scores. Homestead had cruised to wins in its first two games before running into a hungry TKA squad. Senior Derek Sheerer scored all three of the Mustangs’ touchdowns — twice on handoffs and one 86-yard kickoff return to the house. Both teams hit the road next week: TKA at Moreau Catholic and Homestead at Burlingame. — Evan Webeck
Branham 28, Piedmont Hills 7
The host Bruins (2-1) were impressive both offensively and defensively in the victory. Four underclassmen started on the offensive line and the defense did not allow a touchdown. “Huge Win. This defense is playing at a high level,” Branham coach Stephen Johnson said in a text. QB Will Augenstein threw two touchdown passes, one apiece to Owen Newberg and Mateo Poso. Aiden Quezada added a rushing touchdown for the Bruins. Senior inside linebacker Corey DeCarlo had a pick-six. “He caught the ball with a wrapped club on his left hand due to a significant thumb injury,” Johnson said. Piedmont Hills (2-1) scored its only touchdown on a kick return. –– Phil Jensen
Leigh 48, Mt. Pleasant 0
Leigh (3-0) extended its winning streak to eight games dating to the spring with a dominant performance on the road Thursday. Senior Aidan Williams had another impressive game, completing 8 of 10 passes for 179 yards and three TDs. Senior Sam Betz scored touchdowns on his only two carries, finishing with 68 yards. Senior Chuck Grisenti scored on a 63-yard run, taking advantage of his only carry. Kai Cho, a junior, also ran the ball just once, scoring on a 23-yard run. Senior Aidan Goo caught three passes for 71 yards and reached the end zone twice. Senior James Bose had three receptions for 67 yards and a TD. Leigh has next week off, then opens BVAL Santa Teresa Division play Sept. 23 at Westmont. Mt. Pleasant (0-3) next plays Sept. 24 at James Lick in a BVAL West Valley Division opener. — Darren Sabedra
Lincoln-San Jose 62, Willow Glen 8
With touchdowns from six players, the Lincoln Lions roared their way to a rout of Willow Glen on Thursday. QB Tayden Phillips was the do-it-all man with touchdowns via the air, the ground and a kickoff return. Phillips and WR Thomas Crawford connected twice for scores, and senior Rayden Costillo crossed the pylon twice on the ground. The Lions totaled 201 yards on the ground with rushing touchdowns from Phillips and Costillo, as well as Sonny Johnston and Miles Gill. The score was 42-8 by halftime. On defense, senior Jose Orendain came down with two interceptions and returned one for six points. — Evan Webeck
Gunn 35, Hill 7
After being silenced in Week 1, Jason Miller’s prolific rushing offense has roared back to form the past two weeks for Gunn to improve to 2-1. Wingback Kevin Green scored four times — twice on the ground and twice through the air — including a 49-yard connection from QB James Lambert; he totaled a game-high 142 yards on 17 rushing attempts. Filippi Montes provided the highlight of the night with a 68-yard touchdown run. The Titans have put up 91 points in their past two contests after being blanked offensively in their first game against Monterey, which has only allowed one touchdown all season. They’re also breaking in nine new starters, including six on the offensive line, Miller said. — Evan Webeck
Fremont-Sunnyvale 31, Independence 7
Bronson Stein had a big game as the host Firebirds (2-1) scored 31 consecutive points after trailing 7-0. Stein completed 6 of 10 passes for 144 yards, including a 16-yard touchdown), rushed for 32 yards on four carries, and after blocking a punt, recovered it in the end zone for another touchdown. He also recovered a fumble and had eight tackles on defense. Lenny Sinapati caught the TD pass and also rushed for 96 yards on 14 carries. TJ Takafua added 64 yards rushing on four carries, including Fremont’s final touchdown on a 29-yard run. Don Martinez scored Fremont’s first TD on a 10-yard run, and also kicked a 17-yard field goal and four point-after-touchdowns. For Independence (0-3), Anthony Phal caught a 20-yard touchdown pass, Adrian Espinosa rushed for 150 yards and Colin Trang had eight tackles. — Phil Jensen
Palo Alto 27, Pioneer 10
Leading 13-10 at halftime, Palo Alto scored a touchdown in the third quarter and another in the fourth to seal its first victory of the season. After losing at home to St. Ignatius and Serra of the West Catholic Athletic League, Palo Alto got it done Thursday behind two interceptions by Brody Simison, including one that the 5-10, 160-pound senior returned 68 yards for a TD. Josh Butler scored on two short runs and Tobey Lau scored on a run from inside the 5 for Palo Alto, which was playing its third consecutive home game. Isaac De La Cruz kicked a short field goal and Argel Arcangel ran across the goal line from 14 yards out for Pioneer (1-1). Palo Alto travels to Carlmont on Sept. 17. That same night, Pioneer plays host to its Almaden Valley rival Leland. — Darren Sabedra
Santa Clara 17, Del Mar 13
Santa Clara rallied with 14 points in the fourth quarter to remain undefeated (2-0-1). Matthew Nguyen rushed for a 15-yard touchdown to give the visiting Bruins the lead for good, then teammate Michael Rios produced Santa Clara’s final touchdown with a 13-yard run. Del Mar (0-2) responded with a 50-yard touchdown pass from Emmit Hugill to Jakerion Thurman to close the score to 17-13, but Santa Clara stopped a two-point conversion run attempt, then recovered an onside kick. The Bruins took a 3-0 lead in the second quarter on a 27-yard field goal by Dino Beslagic, but Del Mar’s Jaxson Villasenor responded with a 76-yard TD run in the same quarter. — Phil Jensen
Westmont 47, Saratoga 14
If there’s one thing Tim Lugo’s Saratoga Falcons can pocket away from their third straight loss to open the season, they did score the first touchdown on Westmont’s defense — twice. But that wasn’t nearly enough as the Warriors romped to a 3-0 record, with a 125-14 point differential. Senior Elijah Monroe was the star this week, with touchdowns through the air, on the ground and on a kickoff return. Senior Quinn Hoang added to the score with a pick-six. With more than 140 rushing yards, Jacob Lang was a steady force in the Warriors’ attack. Westmont puts its perfect record to the test after a bye week in their BVAL opener at Leigh, which is also undefeated through three games. — Evan Webeck
Yerba Buena 34, Mills 33
Jaime Torres, a senior quarterback/defensive back, ran for four touchdowns and passed for another as Yerba Buena edged Mills in a nail-biter on Thursday. Beto Cabrera, who led the Aztec Warriors in tackles, blocked a last-second field-goal attempt to clinch the victory. Senior Octavio Ceja accounted for more than 100 yards rushing and receiving as Yerba Buena improved to 1-1. Mills fell to 0-3. Yerba Buena will play host to Gunn on Sept. 17. Mills isn’t scheduled to play again until Oct. 1 at Sequoia, according to its MaxPreps page. — Darren Sabedra