Aptos High will close out its preseason at a place head coach Randy Blankenship once called home.
The Mariners (1-1) will travel to Auburn to play the Placer High Hillmen on Friday night.
Blankenship, the Mariners coach for the last seven seasons, was born and raised in Auburn and attended Placer as a freshman.
It will be a nice reunion for Blankenship and the Placer County community but make no mistake, Aptos will be all business after last week’s disappointing finish.
The Aragon High Dons knocked the Mariners back to earth last week in a 28-27 loss at Trevin Dilfer Field.
Aptos fell behind 14-0 in the first quarter but rallied in the second half and came within one missed extra point of forcing a tie against the Dons, who are ranked 135th in the state by MaxPreps.
Friday’s game will be the first time Aptos will play against Placer (1-1), a Sac-Joaquin Section power coached by Joey Montoya.
The Hillmen are ranked 210th in the state and have won three section championships and five straight Pioneer Valley League titles in Montoya’s seven seasons.
Like Aptos, Placer is coming off a loss, falling 43-16 last week to Nevada Union High. The Hillmen trailed by six heading into the fourth quarter but could not keep pace over the final 12 minutes.
Nevada Union had its way with Placer on the ground, rushing for 284 yards and five scores. That news bodes well for Aptos and its Wing-T offense led by junior running back Marcos Reyes.
Here’s a look at the rest of the action happening this weekend:
• North Monterey County vs Marina (at Monterey Peninsula College), Friday at 7:30 p.m. — The North Monterey County High Condors will try to find the win column and exact a little revenge on Friday night against the Marina High Mariners at Monterey Peninsula College in a non-league contest.
N.M.C. (0-2) scored its first touchdown of the season — a run from Konan Van Lear — last week but that was one of the few positives from a 42-7 loss to Monte Vista Christian.
Marina, conversely, notched its first-ever season-opening win two weeks ago with a 21-12 victory against Lynbrook High.
The Mariners, who started playing 11-player football in 2010, won just one game last season. That triumph, a 22-16 win, came against N.M.C. in the second week of the season.
A win would be N.M.C.’s first preseason victory since the 2014 season.
• Pajaro Valley at Soquel, 7 p.m. — The Pajaro Valley High Grizzlies haven’t had many bright spots through their first two games, losing 37-0 to St. Francis High of Watsonville in their opener and 48-6 to Greenfield High last week. But P.V. (0-2) will nonetheless march out to Soquel High to try to turn the ship around against the Knights.
Soquel (1-1) is coming off a 29-19 loss to Los Altos High in which it trailed 23-6 heading into the fourth quarter. The Knights made things a bit more respectable in the final frame but never found the offensive rhythm which led them to a 28-25 season-opening win over Gunn High.
This will be the second consecutive meeting between the two squads. P.V. won last year’s contest, holding off Soquel’s late charge for a 31-28 victory. The odds will be stacked against the Grizzlies, who last week suited up just 19 players and surrendered 48 unanswered points.
• Watsonville at Greenfield, Friday at 7:30 p.m. — The Watsonville High Wildcatz will try to continue their best start in 14 years when they travel south to Greenfield High to take on the Bruins on Friday night.
Watsonville’s 2-0 start is the program’s first since the 2003 season, a campaign in which the Wildcatz finished 9-2. Behind the 1-2 running punch of Matthew Barcelo and Evan Delozier and a stingy defense, the Wildcatz have outscored their first two opponents — Pacific Grove High and Santa Cruz High — 55-30.
Greenfield (1-0) was impressive last week in its season opener against Pajaro Valley High. The Bruins ran wild for 362 yards on the ground, according to the stats kept by MBayPreps. Seniors Isaac Pajas and Andy Hernandez combined to rush for 308 yards and five touchdowns in the 48-6 victory over the Grizzlies.
If Watsonville hopes to continue its strong start, it will need to contain Pajas and Hernandez.
• St. Francis at La Salle, 7:30 p.m. — The St. Francis High Sharks will travel to Milwaukie, Oregon with hopes of keeping their record unscathed against the La Salle High Falcons.
Coached by Aaron Hazel, the brother of St. Francis Athletic Director Adam Hazel, La Salle (0-1) beat St. Francis (2-0) last year in a 44-21 drubbing on Emmett M. Geiser Field at Watsonville High. The Sharks were also undefeated heading into last year’s contest but this year’s group has shown a different gear than the last handful of teams.
St. Francis’ defense has yet to allow a point and the offense has eclipsed the 400-yard mark in both victories. Last week against California School for the Deaf, the Sharks had 410 yards on the ground alone. Devin Mcleod and Andy O’rourke combined for 281 yards and four touchdowns. They were two of 10 different ball carriers featured in head coach John Ausman’s Wing-T attack.
But this week will undoubtedly be St. Francis’ toughest test of the year so far. La Salle is ranked within the top 100 schools in Oregon and will be looking to bounce back after a 31-28 season-opening loss to Hudson Bay High last week.
• Monte Vista Christian at Scotts Valley, Saturday at 2 p.m. — The Monte Vista Christian Mustangs have won 12 straight preseason games dating back to 2014. On Saturday afternoon at Scotts Valley High, they’ll have a chance to make it 13 straight against the Falcons.
M.V.C. (2-0) is fresh off a dominating 42-7 victory over the North Monterey County High Condors in which senior quarterback Sean White tossed four scores. White, who has passed for 384 yards and seven touchdowns through the first two games, could very well have another big night this week against a Scotts Valley (1-1) defense that struggled against the pass last week.
In a 63-21 loss to Terra Nova High, the Falcons allowed Tigers quarterback Nate Gordon to throw for 285 yards and five touchdowns. Terra Nova, ranked 315th in the state by MaxPreps, jumped out to a 35-14 lead in the first quarter and never looked back.
This year’s meeting with Scotts Valley will be the first since 2004. The Falcons easily won that game, 69-6.
