After dropping its season opener, St. Francis is starting to get red hot following a 41-8 crushing victory over Harbor in non-league action Sept. 19.
With the win, the Sharks extended their win streak to three and currently own a 3-1 overall record.
“We are playing like a team now, that’s the difference from Week 1. We have become one unit,” St. Francis head coach John Ausman said.
The offense moved quickly early on in the game, rattling off 35 unanswered points in the first half.
Starting senior quarterback Javier Fonseca accounted for three total touchdowns including a pair of rushing TDs from 3- and 20-yards out. He also had a 51-yard toss to Robert Gomez Jr for the score.
Gomez added a 13-yard rushing touchdown, while John Croghan scored twice on the ground from 5- and 10 yards out.
“We really found our rhythm on offense and really work well as a group, we got to keep the momentum going into league [play],” Fonseca said of his team’s performance.
Fonseca put St. Francis on the scoreboard early with a short touchdown run on a quarterback keeper, giving them an early 7-0 lead.
It wasn’t just the offense doing all the work. The Sharks’ defense dominated throughout the game in the trenches by shutting out Harbor in the first half.
“Our defense played amazing tonight, the defensive line dominated and worked well on stopping the run. When we follow our assignments we have success,” Ausman said.
It showed right away as St. Francis forced Harbor to a quick three and out. The offense struck again with a long 51-yard touchdown catch and run by Gomez that made it 14-0 in the opening stanza.
Gomez cashed in his second touchdown of the night with a 5-yard run that extended the lead to 21-0 at the start of the second quarter.
“We try to get the ball into Robert’s hands as much as possible, he has special talent when he has the rock in his hands,” Ausman said.
St. Francis’ offense had no plans of slowing down. John Crogran punched it in for a six yard touchdown carry that made it 35-0 going into halftime.
“I loved our energy tonight, I feel like we are really gaining momentum and still getting better as a team,” Fonseca said.
The night was also highlighted by kicker Aiden Berrelleza- Hernadez who was 5 for 6 on extra point attempts.
“Aiden is one of our new players, originally a soccer player. He has adjusted very well and has made a great impact to our team as our kicker,” Ausman said.
Harbor got on the board after a long eight-minute drive to start the second half with a 2-yard run into the end zone by Alberto Pegueros, cutting the deficit to 35-8 after a successful 2-point conversion attempt.
But the deficit was too large to overcome for Harbor. St. Francis sealed the victory as Crogran recorded his second rushing touchdown of the evening.
St. Francis (3-1) hosts Seaside High (0-3) in the teams’ Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division–North opener Sept. 28 at 12:30pm.
“I feel we are ready to get league play started, we finished our preseason with lots of momentum. We are focused on Seaside now,” Ausman said.
Aptos 61, Seaside 6: Dylan Guisado led the Mariners with 109 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns on just four carries in a lopsided non-league victory over the Spartans on Sept. 19.
Gavin McDonald, Ryan Solorio, Michael Slaughter, Damian Suchil and Joshua Bermio each recorded one rushing touchdown for Aptos.
Casey MacConnell had two interceptions and Julian Torres recorded one for the Mariners, while fellow teammate Nate Garcia recovered one fumble and blocked one kick.
Aptos (3-1) begins PCAL Gabilan Division play at home against Hollister (3-1) on Sept. 27 at 7:30pm.
At Monte Vista Christian 42, Alvarez 34: Dominic Pierini completed 27 of 39 pass attempts for 442 yards and three touchdowns for the Mustangs in their non-league win over the Eagles on Sept. 20.
Pierini tossed two of his TDs to receiver Nico Downie, who hauled in 12 receptions for 219 yards. Nate Collins sprinted 80 yards to the end zone for a receiving touchdown.
Jordan Ramirez led the Mustangs with two interceptions, while fellow teammate Gunner Sorensen had 10 tackles and one kickoff return for a 61-yard touchdown that sealed the deal late in the fourth quarter.
Next up, MVC (2-2) begins PCAL Mission Division-North play at Watsonville (2-2) on Sept. 28 at 7pm.
Watsonville 17, at Pajaro Valley 2: The Wildcatz put up 17 points in the second quarter en route to a win over the cross-town rival Grizzlies in non-league play Sept. 21.
Sophomore running back Abraham Martínez punched in a 3-yard rushing touchdown midway in the second, and senior quarterback Tino Razzo connected with senior receiver Nate Aguilar on an 11-yard TD pass just before halftime.
Eduardo “Lalo” Garcia also made a 35-yard field goal attempt that went straight down the middle for Watsonville (2-2), which begins PCAL Mission Division–North play against Monte Vista Christian (2-2) on Sept. 28 at 7pm.
Pajaro Valley (1-3) plays at Marina (1-3) in PCAL Santa Lucia Division play Sept. 27 at 7:30pm.
*Sports editor Juan Reyes contributed to this story.
