LAKE COUNTY >> Kelseyville dismantled Healdsburg, Clear Lake needed only one half and change to beat South Fork, and the Lower Lake Trojans overpowered Esparto in the first full weekend of football action for Lake County’s five schools
Week 1 wasn’t all good news for Lake County’s teams. Middletown fell to Salesian 39-19 after keeping it a one-point game for three quarters against its Richmond rival, and the Upper Lake Cougars found out – the hard way – that what you did last season doesn’t mean squat if you don’t show up ready to play the following season.
The first full week of football also had more than its fair share of individual standouts, which is to be expected when you see final scores the likes of 62-7, 35-0, 49-12, 39-19 and 46-22.
And don’t look now but the North Central League I race opens on Friday night with four games, three of them in Lake County. Middletown has the only non-league game this weekend as it travels to Walnut Creek to play a solid Berean Christian squad, the same school the Mustangs lost to last season in Middletown, the night before the devastating Valley Fire broke out. The addition of St. Vincent to the NCL I means that league play has to begin a week earlier to accommodate the eight league games each team must now play.
Following are some of the highlights, lowlights and everything in between from Week 1:
Statistics
Rushing — Kelseyville’s Dwayne Yiggins rushed for 132 yards and two touchdowns against Healdsburg. Teammate Patrick Mick added 81 yards and two TDs. Middletown’s John Kelley had 110 yards on 13 carries and a TD for Middletown against Salesian.
Passing — Upper Lake’s Derek Pritchard went 31-for-50 for 339 yards and three touchdowns against Rincon Valley Christian. Lower Lake’s Hokulni Wickard completed 10 of 15 passes for 180 yards and three TDs against Esparto, and Kelseyville’s Logan Barrick went 8-for-12 for 168 yards and two TDs against Healdsburg.
Receiving — Lower Lake’s Marlon Jones pulled in six passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns. Upper Lake’s Dre Santos caught nine passes for 120 yards and a TD while teammate Chris Fecht had nine cataches for 107 yards and a TD. Bryan Carillo’s 71 yards and two touchdowns led the Knights against Healdsburg. Lower Lake’s Ethan Watson had three catches for 52 yards and a TD.
Special teams
Punt return — Lower Lake’s Marlon Jones returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown against Esparto, part of his three-touchdown night.
Kicking — Kelseyville’s Bryan Carillo went six-for-six on extra-point conversions.
Defense
Pick-six — Clear Lake’s Bobby Gonzalez and Lower Lake’s Jermaine Watson returned interceptions for touchdowns as their teams logged season victory No. 1.
Sack attack — That’s one, two, three and four sacks for Upper Lake defensive end Jacob Kalawaia against Rincon Valley Christian.
Cleanin up — Lower Lake’s Eric Egger led the team with nine total tackles against Esparto.
This and that
Good things come in threes — Marlon Jones scored three touchdowns for Lower Lake, Upper Lake’s Derek Pritchard passed for three touchdowns, and Kelseyville’s Logan Barrick accounted for three touchdowns, passing for two and running for another.
Better things come in fours — Lower Lake’s Hokulani Wickard threw for three scores and ran for a fourth. He was the team’s leading rusher for the second game in a row.
Have a day — Lower Lake’s Marlon Jones had two receiving touchdowns, returned a punt for another score and had one of his team’s two interceptions against Esparto. Otherwise the senior had a pretty quiet night.
1-1 in debuts — Clear Lake first-year coach Mark Cory won his debut with the Cardinals while first-year Upper Lake coach Mike Smith came up short.
That’s a TKO — South Fork lost four players to injury and decided it had had enough against Clear Lake as the game was stopped just minutes into the third quarter with the Cardinals leading 35-0. South Fork isn’t done with Lake County just yet. The Cubs are no doubt looking forward to being Kelseyville’s homecoming opponent on Sept. 23.
If you stick around long enough, you may see it all — South Fork conceding a game at halftime and Upper Lake trying to cover three receivers with two defenders.
Two-for-two — Lower Lake’s junior varsity squad is off to a 2-0 start.
Six-pack — Six different Kelseyville players scored touchdowns against Healdsburg. They were Bryan Carillo (2), Dwayne Yiggins (2), Patrick Mick (2), Logan Barrick, JD Prescott and Kyle Moore.
Homecoming — Lower Lake opens its league schedule against Willits on Friday and it’s also homecoming for the Trojans.
Eight-man football special — Upper Lake and Rincon Valley Christian combined for 663 passing yards on Saturday.
Penaltied themselves to death — The Upper Lake Cougars were tagged for 140 yards in penalties, 45 on on Rincon Valley scoring drive alone.
Big plays kill — Rincon Valley Christian completed passes of 55, 58 and 59 yards against the Upper Lake defense. And keep in mind that eight-man football is contested on a field 80 yards long, not 100.
Friday night lights — Matchups in Week 2 include Willits at Lower Lake, St. Helena at Kelseyville, Clear Lake at Fort Bragg and Upper Lake at Calistoga. On Saturday afternoon, it’s Middletown at Berean Christian.
Streaks — While most of the games between the two have been airtight, including all three playoff meetings, the Salesian Pride have now beat the Middletown Mustangs 11 straight times dating back to Middletown’s last win in 2008.
Just for the heck of it — How about no more fires in Lake County this year?
