By Richard Paolinelli
MaxPreps.com
After starting the season with three non-league wins, Valley Christian looked to be poised to challenge for the championship of the West Catholic Athletic League this year. But two losses and a tie in its first three WCAL games left the Warriors wondering if their season was lost.
But the Warriors rebounded on Friday by destroying St. Francis 36-8, a win that may have salvaged the season for Valley Christian (4-2-1, 1-2-1) and left open the door for a possible playoff berth in the Central Coast Section later this year.
Shelving the Wing-T offense, Valley Christian turned to quarterback Cory Gambello to carry the load and the junior responded with a 12-for-15 effort for 166 yards and two touchdowns.
Gambello set up the Warriors' first score with a 62-yard pass to Daniel Johnson and Cameron Mitchell dashed in from 16 yards out for a 7-0 lead. Johnson converted a reverse into a 60-yard scoring run and a 17-0 lead and the Warriors did not look back.
Johnson finished with 89 yards on 10 carries and Marshall added 96 yards on 20 carries as the Warriors' offense piled up 337 yards on offense. The running game accounted for 211 of those yards.
The only score of the game for St. Francis (3-3-1, 1-2), which was held to just 134 yards, came on a successful conversion on fifth down.
An official incorrectly switched the down marker from fourth down back to third, giving the Lancers an extra down to get a critical first down and set up Marty Manoukian's 14-yard scoring run.
But it was too little too late by then for St. Francis.
The loss also opened the door for Serra High to get back into the WCAL chase.
The Padres (5-3, 2-2) jumped past St. Francis in the league standings for fourth place with the toughest part of their schedule behind them after a 25-13 victory over St. Ignatius on Friday.
After falling to Riordan by 17 points last week, Serra lost one running back to suspension and two more to injuries during the week and looked to be in deep trouble.
Junior fullback Jared Braun filled in spectacularly with 23carries for 206 yards and three touchdowns, including a 57-yard touchdown run and a 28-yard scamper for his second score.
St. Ignatius fell to 4-3-1 overall and 0-3-1 in league play despite a 20-for-29, 216 yard effort by quarterback Abe Waziri. Waziri ran for one score and threw for another in the losing effort.
Wild shootout in Carmel
Carmel High led by 11 points at home with just under six minutes left in the third quarter on Friday night against Sacred Heart Prep. A Carmel win looked like a sure thing.
But looks were deceiving as Sacred Heart Prep rallied for a stunning 54-38 victory over the host team.
A 70-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Matt Bocci cut the lead to 32-27 and a botched snap on a punt by Carmel set up a 6-yard scoring run by Matt Walter for a 33-32 Sacred Heart Prep lead. Carmel would never regain the lead.
The two teams scored 27 points in the final quarter as Giordano Capovilla finished with eight carries for 158 yards and two scores, while Walter had 15 carries for 113 yards and five touchdowns to lead Sacred Heart Prep.
