Prep football: Marin Catholic tops Tam for first win of season

The Marin Catholic High football team found new ways to score Saturday in a non-league clash against county rival Tam.

The Wildcats scored on a long punt return, a pick six and even a safety en route to their initial victory of the season, a facile 40-7 triumph against the visiting Red-tailed Hawks.

But in some ways, it might have been a coming-of-age outing for sophomore quarterback Dylan Skrinar, who not only threw three touchdown passes but also accounted for 47 rushing yards.

Entering the season, the young quarterback was touted as not only an accurate thrower but also a solid runner.

Against Tam (0-4), Skrinar showcased some of his rushing abilities despite suffering two early sacks, a recurring problem during the previous three losses for MC (1-3).

Skrinar, obviously starting to get a feel for the speed of the varsity game, used his legs for a key 11-yard run in the final seconds before intermission.

That set the stage for his 12-yard touchdown pass to a diving Johnny Greco in the far corner of the end zone and extended the Wildcats’ lead to a comfortable 28-7.

“We all have faith in Dylan,” said senior running back Jarred Geissberger, who returned a first-quarter punt 85 yards for a touchdown. “He’s really come on to lead the team. And he’s only a sophomore. You don’t see that happening for a lot of guys as young as he is.”

Skrinar and the MC offense came out flat. In the Wildcats’ first three possessions, a Skrinar interception was sandwiched by two three-and-out series.

The MC offense came to life suddenly, however, one play after Macaulay picked off the second of three interceptions thrown by Tam’s tall lefty quarterback Henry Tuttle.

On first down, Skrinar dropped a pass into Cooper Milan’s arms as he was streaking down the sideline for a 39-yard touchdown.

The MC defense, meanwhile, was stout all game and limited the Red-tailed Hawks two first downs in the opening quarter.

Tam’s second punt in the opening stanza was fielded in the air by Geissberger, who angled right, found a wall of blockers and zig-zagged into the end zone.

“Give all the credit to all the blockers on that one,” Geissberger said. “All I did was catch the ball and run down the field. We had lots of good plays on special teams today.”

In fact, on Tam’s next punt moments later Gabe Baker fielded a punt and returned the ball 36 yards, only to have the play nullified by a penalty.

But MC linebacker Luke Chigos made up for his team’s miscue quickly when he intercepted a pass and raced 45 yards for a touchdown, which extended the Wildcats’ lead to 21-0 early in the second quarter.

Tam put its only points on the scoreboard late in the half after a Cole Kramlich sack forced an MC punt. Three plays later, Tam receiver Timo Ural got behind the MC secondary and hauled in a 48-yard touchdown pass from Tuttle.

“Of course we knew coming in that MC is a tough, well-coached team,” Tam coach Anthony Mejia said. “So, we knew what we were up against today. But still, our coaching staff and the team feel like we’re getting better little by little. We still believe in ourselves. We just have to fix the little mistakes that keep costing us.”

MC coach Mazi Moayed said his team is “just trying to find ways to get better.”

Skrinar was certainly better at quarterback, clicking on 14-of-22 passes for 191 yards. Geissberger led MC’s 117-yard ground game with 52 yards on eight carries. Nick Brisbin and Carter Matza led all receivers with four catches apiece.

Marin  Catholic 40, Tam 7

non-league

Tam  0  7  0  0  –  7

Marin Catholic  14 14  9  3  –  40

SCORING SUMMARY

MC – Milan 39 pass from Skrinar (Stephens kick)

MC – Geissberger 85 punt return (Stephens kick)

MC – Chigos 45 INT return (Stephens kick)

T – Ural 48 pass from Tuttle (Keane kick)

MC – Greco 12 pass from Skrinar (Stephens kick)

MC – Safety, bad snap through end zone

MC – Matza 6 pass from Skrinar (Stephens kick)

MC – Stephens 24 FG

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING – Tam, Kelsey 7-26, Platt 4-9, Tuttle 7-(minus-27), bad snap 2-(minus-34). Totals: 20-(minus-26). MC, Geissberger 8-52, Trammell 6-20, Skrinar 14-47, Baker 2-5, Matza 1-7, bad snap 1-(minus-14), McAulay 2-(minus-5), McGovern 1-0. Totals: 35-117.

PASSING – Tam, Tuttle 9-22-3 120. MC, Skrinar 14-22-1 191, Macaulay 3-5-0 9. Totals: 17-27-1 200.

RECEIVING – Tam, Kramlich 3-44, Ural 3-61, Kelsey 2-10, Edwards 1-5. Totals: 9-120. MC, Brisbin 4-51, Tarantino 2-7, Matza 4-63, Milan 1-39, Greco 3-31, Crum 1-(minus-3), Stephens 1-1, McGovern 1-11. Totals: 17-200.

Records – Tam 0-4, Marion Catholic 1-3.