Top-ranked Serra started slow Friday night but heated up in the second half to roll past St. Francis in a West Catholic Athletic League opener.
De La Salle got things going in the second half, too, but the second-ranked Spartans still lost at home to Folsom.
James Logan toppled previously unbeaten Heritage and El Cerrito won a tight game on the road against Vacaville.
Our roundup has details and/or links to all those games.
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On to the roundup …
Ranked teams
No. 1 Serra 29, No. 9 St. Francis 7
Leading 8-7 at halftime, Serra scored three touchdowns in the first 14 minutes of the season half on its way to winning on the road over rival St. Francis in a WCAL opener. Maealiuaki Smith threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns to help lead the way. David Kiefer has the complete recap here.
Folsom 24, No. 2 De La Salle 20
After going 30 years without losing to a team from this half of the state, De La Salle lost its fourth in a year on Friday night, the past three on its home field in Concord. Austin Mack, Folsom’s 6-foot-6, 215-pound quarterback, leaped over the goal line from a half-yard out on fourth-and-goal with 15 seconds left to give the visitors the victory. Darren Sabedra has all the details here.
No. 4 Wilcox 21, No. 7 Menlo-Atherton 20
Wilcox stopped a two-point conversion attempt with about four minutes left that would have given visiting Menlo-Atherton the lead, and Elijah Walker put the game away for more big runs as the junior finished with 192 yards to keep the Chargers undefeated. Check out Joseph Dycus’ game story here.
No. 6 San Ramon Valley 42, No. 24 Liberty 14
Luke Baker threw five touchdown passes – three to Gavin Jones – as the Wolves remained undefeated with a nonleague victory on the road over Liberty. Baker’s 18-yard scoring pass to Jones in the first quarter gave San Ramon Valley a 7-0 lead. After Giancarlo Olveda’s 1-yard run evened the score 7-7, Caleb Padrid put the visitors back on top with a 50-yard run. Baker followed with a 54-yard scoring pass to Seane Williams that widened SRV’s lead to 21-7. Nate Bell’s 25-yard pass to Olveda cut the margin to seven, but three more touchdown passes by Baker put the score out of reach. SRV (4-0) plays host to Foothill on Friday before a huge matchup at McClymonds on Oct. 7. Liberty (3-2) has next week off, then visits Pittsburg on Oct. 7. – Darren Sabedra
No. 8 Bellarmine 34, No. 22 St. Ignatius 14
Bellarmine, playing its first game this season at San Jose City College, got three first-half touchdown runs from Ben Pfaff and 219 yards passing and a TD from Parker Threatt en route to an impressive victory over St. Ignatius in WCAL play. Glenn Reeves has the full recap here.
No. 21 Sacred Heart Prep 10, No. 10 Los Gatos 7
In a defensive battle on Sacred Heart Prep’s home field in Atherton, Sean Tinsley kicked an 18-yard field goal with 7.8 seconds left to send visiting Los Gatos to its second defeat this season. The teams traded turnovers on the first six drives of the second half. Read all about it in Alex Simon’s game story here.
No. 12 El Cerrito 14, Vacaville 9
Junior quarterback Michael Vanhook threw first-half touchdown passes to Warren Smith and LeDuane Thomas, and the Gauchos (5-0) hung on to spoil Vacaville’s homecoming. “There were fireworks and there were a lot of people there,” El Cerrito coach Jacob Rincon said. Vanhook, a transfer from De Anza, connected with Smith in the first quarter, then he threw about a 45-yard pass to Thomas in the second period to make it 14-0 at the half. Vacaville (2-3) closed to 14-3 in the third quarter, then scored its only touchdown with about 1:30 left to make it 14-9. The Bulldogs went for the 2-point conversion and failed. A subsequent onside kick attempt was recovered by Jayvon Bolds, then he ran for a first down to ice the game for the Gauchos. The only games left on El Cerrito’s schedule are the five contests against teams in the Tri-County Athletic League Rock Division. The last two versus De Anza and Salesian are likely to be the toughest. The Gauchos have a chance to go undefeated in a full regular season for the first time since 2012. They were 5-0 in the spring of 2021, a season that was delayed and shortened by the Covid pandemic. – Mike Lefkow
James Logan 17, No. 13 Heritage 7
The Colts (3-2) came from behind to upset Heritage, which lost for the first time after starting the season with four straight wins. Jaleel Jones scored on about a 65-yard run to put James Logan ahead 12-7 in the fourth quarter, then Jack Morton caught a pass for the 2-point conversion and a seven-point lead. Later in the period, Ricky Burton booted what coach Eddie Smith estimated was about a 45-yard field goal for the final margin. Burton is a member of an under-17 soccer team that just won a national title, Smith said. The Colts are hopeful their victory over Heritage will help when seedings are announced for the North Coast Section playoffs. “We created the toughest (non-league) season we could, and we’ll see what happens,” Smith said. “Maybe we’ll get a fifth or sixth seed.” Last year the Colts were a low seed in Division, and they were run out of the playoffs by De La Salle in the first round. Heritage scored its only touchdown in the first half on a 20-yard fade pass from quarterback Austin Peters to Brooks Davis. The James Logan defense held Heritage running back Devon Rivers to 81 yards on 19 carries. It was the first time this season Rivers hadn’t gained at least 200 yards in a game. He now has 1,072 yards for the season. – Mike Lefkow
No. 14 Amador Valley 14, Foothill 7 (OT)
Jake Goldsworthy’s 1-yard touchdown run in overtime provided the winning points as Amador Valley edged host Foothill in a thrilling Battle of Pleasanton rivalry matchup. Goldsworthy finished with 148 yards on 23 carries. Phil Jensen has all the details here.
No. 16 Mitty 32, No. 20 Sacred Heart Cathedral 21
Trailing by a touchdown at halftime, Mitty lived up to its “gritty Mitty” mantra in the second half to beat Sacred Heart Cathedral at Kezar Stadium in a WCAL opener. QB Wills Towers and receivers Danny Scudero and Ben Kim led the way. Shayna Rubin has the game story here.
East Bay
Bishop O’Dowd 27, Castlemont 6
Bishop O’Dowd had scored only 20 points heading into its game Friday against Castlemont. The Dragons topped that total while winning for the first time this season. Quarterback Devin Wilson had three touchdown passes, connecting with Makari Kenion twice and Tyler Brasi. Saliou Sow had one rushing touchdown in the game played at McClymonds High. Bishop O’Dowd (1-4) will open Mission Valley/West Alameda Foothill Division play on the road against Tennyson on Oct. 7. Castlemont (2-3) will play at Oakland on Oct. 14 to begin Oakland Athletic League play. – Jesús Cano
Encinal 19, Alameda 18
The Island Bowl at Thompson Field in Alameda came down to the wire. The Jets took a lead into halftime, but Alameda tied the score at 12 apiece in the third quarter. Encinal’s Kenneth Lorenzo scored what ended up being the winning touchdown. Encinal playmaker Tristan Gabriel Berena scored a touchdown on a rollout to put the Jets on the board. Ajhuan Parker also scored a touchdown for Alameda. Encinal plays at Castro Valley next week, while Alameda plays at San Lorenzo. — Joseph Dycus
Freedom 46, Eastlake-Chula Vista 28
Herschel Turner rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns and Dominick Tomlin had 158 yards and one touchdown on 11 carries to lead Freedom to its second consecutive win. Norman Robinson had two interceptions, including one that he returned for a touchdown. Myles Hunt completed 7 of 14 passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns to Samaje Featherstone. “The last two weeks have been critical, the kids have doubled down on the culture we’re building here and it means everything for it to pay off on the scoreboard,” Freedom coach Zach Sims said. “My team captains have really taken control of the team and they’ve done an amazing job growing our culture. When it pays off on Fridays, it makes the kids feel like they have the formula to compete with anyone.” Freedom (2-2) will play host to rival Heritage next Friday in a Bay Valley Athletic League opener. – Jesús Cano
Marin Catholic 34, Antioch 11
Antioch (1-4) lost its fourth consecutive game. Charles Williams had a trio of touchdowns — two rushing and one on a punt return — and quarterback Joseph Cooks connected with Greer Arthur and Kelly Storms for touchdown passes for Marin Catholic. Antioch scored on a field goal by Joshua Iraheta and a rushing touchdown from Larenzo Mayfield. Antioch will travel across town to play Deer Valley next Thursday for the City of Antioch Mayor’s Cup. – Jesús Cano
South Bay/Peninsula/SF
Del Mar 50, Andrew Hill 8
Junior quarterback Andre Latimore ran for 185 yards and three touchdowns in eight carries as Del Mar, playing on the road, cruised past Andrew Hill in a Blossom Valley Athletic League West Valley Division opener. The Dons also got a big night from Somto Obasi, who carried nine times for 141 yards and two TDs. Bradley Tavish added 81 yards rushing and a touchdown. Senior captains Jaxson Villasenor and Joshua Villarreal led the defense as Del Mar improved to 2-2. Hill fell to 0-4. Next Friday, Del Mar will play host to San Jose and Hill will be at home to face Mt. Pleasant. – Darren Sabedra
Lincoln-San Jose 41, Gunderson 9
Tayden Phillips completed all three of his pass attempts for 151 yards and three touchdowns as Lincoln improved to 4-0 with a nonleague victory on the road over Gunderson. Freshman Kyan Phillips – the quarterback’s brother – caught two TD passes and Salvador Espinoza reeled in the other, from 66 yards out. Espinoza also ran for 73 yards and a touchdown in six carries and Tayden Phillips rushed four times for 49 yards and a TD. Lincoln has a big nonleague game at home next Friday against Branham. Gunderson (2-3) has next week off, then opens its league schedule at home on Oct. 6 against Prospect. – Darren Sabedra
Westmont 28, Leland 25
Zackary Zepeda threw two touchdown passes to Haris Kadich and Jacob Lang ran for two TDs as Westmont (5-0) rallied from an 18-7 halftime deficit to defeat Leland on Thursday. Eshaan Adusumalli had a 90-yard interception return for a touchdown as Leland (1-4) built the halftime advantage. Zepeda’s 4-yard scoring pass to Kadich sparked Westmont’s second-half comeback as the Warriors went up 28-18. Brandon Mann‘s 46-yard pass to Jayson Jinguji brought Leland within three with two minutes left. Westmont opens Santa Teresa Division play Friday at home against Sobrato when Leland hosts Pioneer. — Glenn Reeves
Check back throughout Saturday for updates.
Source: www.mercurynews.com