Ahead of interlocking against each other, Napa Valley high school
football teams that took the field on Friday came up winners one more
time.
When the Napa Grizzlies host the American Canyon Wolves meet for a
pivotal Vine Valley Athletic League contest at Memorial Stadium on
Friday, it will feature two Napa Valley teams taking on each other. That
trend will increase significantly the final four weeks of the regular season.
From there, the conversation becomes about pursuing league titles and
achieving higher seeds for the CIF North Coast Section playoffs.
Napa had bye while American Canyon blanked the Sonoma Valley
Dragons 68-0. The Vintage Crushers blitzed the Casa Grande (Petaluma)
Gauchos 39-15. The Justin-Siena Braves dominated the Petaluma Trojans
33-10. The St. Helena Saints blasted the Clear Lake (Lakeport) 47-14.
The Calistoga Wildcats hammered the Potter Valley Bearcubs 48-6.
Here is a closer look in alphabetical order:
AMERICAN CANYON
Looking back: For the second time in as many weeks, the Wolves shut
out their overmatched opponent. For the second time in as many seasons,
the Wolves defense limited Sonoma’s offense to under 50 yards of total
offense. As for the Wolves offense, they gained 449 yards on 46 plays.
Camren Lee and Kaave Gaviola each scored two touchdowns. Ezekiel
Anderson, James Larson and quarterback Vance Eschenburg each scored
one touchdown. Eschenburg accounted for 197 yards from scrimmage.
He carried 10 times for 65 yards and completed 11 of 20 for 132 yards,
three touchdowns and nary an interception.
Looking ahead: The matchup between the Wolves and Grizzlies is a
compelling one. I hesitate to say it is a VVAL title elimination game but
a win puts you in position to control your own fate while a loss means
you have to win out and get help. This game has a “rubber meets the
road” feel. Napa has been knocked for its lack of strength of schedule,
and rightfully so. However, neither team has faced a schedule that
resembles Murderer’s Row. According to calpreps.com, American
Canyon’s strength of schedule is only slightly higher than what Napa
possesses, minus-20.4 to minus-22.2.
CALISTOGA
Looking back: Between rushes and pass attempts, quarterback Christian
Caldera had seven attempts for 145 yards and four touchdowns. To further
illustrate his impact, three carries, 65 yards three touchdowns. On the
passing side, 2 of 4 for 80 yards and a 40-yard touchdown pass to Isaac
Garcia. Fernando Rios and Christian Pederson also scored rushing
touchdowns for Calistoga. The Wildcats recorded a backhanded shutout
because the lone Potter Valley score was Russell Fansler returning a
fumble for a score. The Wildcats intercepted three passes and allowed 54
yards of total offense (minus-15 rushing) on 36 plays.
Looking ahead: The Wildcats are in a similar position as last season after
four games, they were also 3-1 -- and later 4-1 -- only to fizzle down the
stretch. Calistoga lost three straight before closing with a 56-0 win over
Roseland Prep (Santa Rosa). The Wildcats host Laytonville on Friday.
The Warriors are the epitome of a mixed bag at 2-2. Laytonville has wins
over Potter Valley (46-0) and Roseland Prep (59-12). Those two teams
have a combined record of 0-6. The Warriors two losses are against South
Fork (44-8) and Tomales (32-24). Those clubs are a combined 5-3.
JUSTIN-SIENA
Looking back: Hudson Beers to Miles Williams. Same song, different
verse. That pair hooked up on two scoring connections. Beers completed
15 of 27 for 268 yards. Williams was on the receiving end for seven
grabs for 147 yards. On the rushing side, Noah Young had nine carries
for 72 yards including a 26-yard touchdown run. As a unit, Justin rolled
up 349 yards of total offense. Defensively, the Braves owned the
proceedings in allowing just 194 yards of total offense.
Looking ahead: Justin’s brief time in the VVAL had been marked by
warning track power. This time, they hit a three-run homer that landed
about 20 rows into the bleachers. The Braves are now 2-4 in one
possession games against VVAL teams. Justin takes on Sonoma in what
figures to be a compelling matchup because some Sonoma kids attend
Justin. The Dragons were 6-0 winners in last year’s contest. From a big
picture standpoint, the Braves need Friday’s win to get a top half of the
bracket seed for the NCS Div. VI playoffs because Napa, Vintage and
American Canyon await.
ST. HELENA
Looking back: Ivan Robledo continued to put up video game like
numbers and catapulted his way into the Saints record book. Robledo
recorded a school record 280 yards rushing on 14 carries and six
touchdowns. The 280 yards broke Sebastian Segura’s record of 270
established in 2013. The six touchdowns tied the single-game record
set by Tom Blanchfield in 1960. Backfield mate Cody DiTomaso
compiled 108 yards on seven carries and a touchdown. Defensively,
the Saints sacked Cardinals’ quarterback Darius Ford four times and
intercepted him twice, one courtesy of Robledo and Sergio Hernandez.
St. Helena limited Clear Lake to 83 yards on 29 carries.
Looking ahead: After two straight weeks of logging traveler mileage
to Lake County, the Saints return home to face a Willits team that is 4-1
overall and 2-0 in the North Central League I. St. Helena, Willits and
Middletown are in a three-way tie for first place in the NCL I. Willits
defeated Cloverdale 34-14. The two teams have one common foe, if
you believe in that theory. Willits defeated Clear Lake 20-6. For those
thinking big picture, Salesian (Richmond) and St. Helena appear on a
collision course for the top two seeds in NCS Div. VII.
VINTAGE
Looking back: The only way the Crushers did not score was recording
a safety or they would have scored for the cycle. Offensively, the
Crushers amassed 328 yards on 40 carries. Mauricio Castro ran for a
touchdown. Jacob Aaron threw two scoring passes, one to Castro and
another to Cutler Low. Bill Chaidez threw a touchdown pass to Sam
Neal. Vintage’s defense was also prominent in the act with Jayden
Benjamin returning a fumble for a score. The Crusher defense allowed
just 135 yards on 74 plays. The only Gaucho scores came in the fourth
quarter with the game out of reach.
Looking ahead: Coming off a bye following their 21-13 loss to
Bellarmine Prep (San Jose) on Sept. 13, the Crushers could not have
asked for a better bounceback performance. That momentum would
appear to have a real chance to continue against Petaluma on the road.
The Trojans are 1-5 and have lost their last four games by a combined
score of 125-17 including its aforementioned loss to Justin. With four
games remaining, the Crushers’ objective is to raise another VVAL
banner in order to get potentially the No. 3 seed for the NCS Div. II
playoffs.
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