Prep football: San Rafael defenders make big plays late in season-opening win
San Rafael High’s defense was bending but not breaking in the second half on Friday night as the Santa Rosa football team was threatening to wipe out a big halftime lead.
Four different Bulldogs defenders came up with key plays in the final quarter to help San Rafael hang on for a 21-12 victory in the season opener for both teams.
San Rafael’s 21-0 halftime lead had been cut to 21-12 early in the fourth quarter when Santa Rosa quarterback Israel Gomez-Noriega hit Daniel Hockert down the left sideline for a big play.
San Rafael’s Josue Munoz, who had already scored two touchdowns on offense, was the only Bulldog with a shot to corral Hockert and keep it a two-score game.
Munoz made the tackle, hurting himself a bit in the process, tackling Hockert at the San Rafael 36-yard line and limiting him to a 35-yard gain.
“That play was emblematic of who Josue is,” San Rafael coach Casey Sully said. “He’s a gritty guy who gives high effort all the time. He brings the intensity, brings the energy to practice. He’s been killing it in the weight room all offseason. Incredibly committed, incredibly dedicated guy. You can just count on him to be the guy that’s going to step up and give relentless effort on every single play. I think chasing that down from the opposite side of the field embodies what he’s about.”
Without that play, San Rafael’s lead would have been cut to at least 21-18 with more than 6 minutes left in the game. The Bulldogs needed several more big-time plays defensively to hold off the Panthers, who were gaining yards in chunks with the ground game in the second half.
Villaldo Deleon came up with the next big play with his third sack of the game. Deleon scooped up a fumble by Gomez-Noriega but the referees ruled that a Santa Rosa player was able to wrest control of the ball from Deleon as both players went to the ground.
“(Deleon) always gives effort, has the length to really play and give people difficulty and just has a relentless motor tracking people down,” Sully said. “He’s stepped up huge for us in the past and did it again tonight.”
Santa Rosa kept the ball with a fresh set of downs. San Rafael’s Casey Earnest picked off a pass in the red zone two plays later to keep it a two-score game.
“I thought I got beat on the route but (the quarterback) underthrew it just a little bit and I was able to reach up there and get it when (the receiver) was going for it,” Earnest said.
The play allowed San Rafael to bleed the clock down to about 2 minutes left on offense before punting the ball back to Santa Rosa.
“Casey’s been awesome,” Sully said. “He only started playing corner like two weeks ago. We really needed someone for a scrimmage and he stepped up and played amazing. He’s a sophomore and really rangy. It may not look like he’s moving down the field fast but he gobbles up ground and made a play on the ball.”
Santa Rosa got the ball back one last time but Rio McLaughlin intercepted Gomez-Noriega on the first play to end the threat.
“Rio came in from San Domenico because he wanted to play football,” Sully said. “He’s been at every single practice as well and worked really hard. This was his first tackle football game so for him to get that after all the work he’s put in in the offseason is super rewarding to see.”
San Rafael scored all 21 of its points in the first half, getting scoring runs of 1 and 2 yards by Munoz to take a 14-0 lead. Senior quarterback Joe Miller led the offense on the first scoring drive before Lachlan Royston went under center for a couple of drives in the second quarter.
Royston in at qb for the bulldogs. Drive ends with Munoz scoring from 2 yards out. 14-0. #marinfootball pic.twitter.com/4Guoj3sryz
— Ian Ross (@IRossMIJ) August 31, 2024
Langston capped San Rafael’s scoring with a 5-yard touchdown to Haden Berlinsky on a fourth-and-goal play.
Bulldogs go on fourth and goal. Royston to Berlinsky TD. 21-0 late 2Q. #marinfootball pic.twitter.com/9HgZL4d9Tf
— Ian Ross (@IRossMIJ) August 31, 2024
“We’re going to have to look at film and evaluate and see who’s going to be going next week (at quarterback),” Sully said. “They both played well, generally made pretty good decisions, made some explosive plays and gave us an opportunity to win.”
Miller finished with 101 passing yards while Royston threw for 61 yards and ran for 28 more.
Berlinsky had team-highs with seven catches for 68 yards. Harper Corso had four catches for 41 yards. C.J. Harter carried the ball seven times for 43 yards.
San Rafael 21, Santa Rosa 12
Non-league
Santa Rosa 0 0 12 0 – 12
San Rafael 7 14 0 0 – 21
SCORING SUMMARY
S. Rafael – Munoz 1 run (Pilla kick)
S. Rafael – Munoz 2 run (Pilla kick)
S. Rafael – Berlinsky 5 pass from Royston (Pilla kick)
S. Rosa – Gallardo 27 run (pass fail)
S. Rosa – Mills 1 run (run fail)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING–San Rafael, Munoz 11-47, Harter 7-43, Royston 6-28, Garcia 2-13, Miller 1-(minus-2). Totals 27-129. Santa Rosa, Mills 7-65, Gallardo 5-52, Thompson 12-38, Villanueva 3-11, Gomez-Noriega 1-8, Hockert 1-4, Nojima 3-(minus-4). Totals 32-174.
PASSING–San Rafael, Miller 10-13-0 101, Royston 5-8-0 61. Sacks: 4-24. Totals 15-21-0 138. Santa Rosa, Gomez-Noriega 7-13-2 111. Sacks: 3-17. Totals 7-13-2 94.
RECEIVING–San Rafael, Berlinsky 7-68, Corso 4-46, Madden 1-32, Canziani 1-13, Earnest 1-6, Pilla 1-(Minus-3). Totals 15-162. Santa Rosa, Hockert 2-43, Mills 3-31, Rivera 1-20, Villanueva 1-17. Totals 7-111.
Records– San Rafael 1-0. Santa Rosa 0-1.