LAKE COUNTY >> Clear Lake, Middletown, Lower Lake and Kelseyville are the top four teams in the North Central League I varsity football standings following Week 6 of the high school season and it’s only going to get more interesting from here on out.
Better make that a lot more interesting.
The next two weeks should go a long way in determining who wins what this season. On Friday, Middletown (3-0) travels to Cloverdale (1-3) while Kelseyville (2-1) plays Clear Lake (3-0) in Bass Bowl VIII at Kelseyville. On Friday, Oct. 13, Kelseyville visits Lower Lake (3-1) while Middletown hosts Clear Lake.
So buckle your seatbelts.
Following is a look back at some of the highlights and lowlights from Week 6:
Statistics
Rushing — Dante Bassignani of Upper Lake rushed for 121 yards on nine carries with a touchdown. Kelseyville’s Patrick Mick finished with 97 yards on nine carries with a TD.
Passing — Lower Lake’s Hokulani Wickard completed 10 of 18 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns. Middletown’s Luke Holt also passed for a pair of TDs, completing seven of eigh passes for 137 yards. Kesleyville’s Alex Garcia was 8-for-13 for 122 yards and a TD.
Receiving — Middletown’s Trey O’Neill had five catches for 104 yards and two TDs. Kelseyville’s Zack Watkins caught three passes for 79 yards and a TD. Lower Lake’s Charles Powell caught four passes for 71 yards.
Special teams
Plenty of practice — Upper Lake kicker Jovany Martinez kicked off 10 times in the Cougars’ rout of Roseland Collegiate Prep. Half of those kicks reached the end zone for touchbacks.
Defense
Sack attack — The Kelseyville Knights sacked Cloverdale quarterback James Wirt six times on Friday, including on three straight plays in the third quarter. Bryan Carillo had two of those sacks.
Making it happen — Lukaz Molinero had a pick-six for the Kelseyville defense, returning an interception 23 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter. Teammate JD Prescott also had a defensive score for the Knights, returning a fumble 26 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter. Lower Lake’s Charles Powel had two interceptions against St. Helena while teammate Keshaun Bridges sacked St. Helena’s quarterback twice.
Pick-six times two — Upper Lake’s Dante Bassignani returned an interception 25 yards for a touchdown against Roseland Collegiate Prep. He also recovered a fumble that set up another score. Middletown’s Victory Guzman had a 28-yard interception return for a TD against St. Vincent.
This and that
In case you missed it — Upper Lake’s players sang the national anthem A Cappella prior to the Cougars’ homecoming game with Roseland Collegiate Prep on Saturday night. Three Roseland players took a knee during the anthem.
Had a night — Kelseyville middle linebacker JD Prescott not only led the Knights in tackles against Cloverdale, but he returned a fumble for a touchdown, intercepted a pass, and rushed for 20 yards and a touchdown as a reserve running back in the fourth quarter.
Streaks — Middletown and Clear Lake, which had a bye this past weekend, have both won four straight.
Bass Bowl time — Kelseyville hosts Clear Lake in Bass Bowl VIII on Friday night. Kelseyville leads the series 5-2 and has won each of the last four meetings. No Bass Bowl game has had greater meaning to the two teams than this year’s meeting. Clear Lake enters play 3-0 and tied with Middletown for first place atop the NCL I standings. Kelseyville is 2-1 and just a game back of both teams. Lower Lake (3-1) has a bye this weekend.
NCL III — The NCL III could have as many as four new teams for eight-man football next season. St. Vincent is leaving the 11-man ranks of the NCL I to join the league and Point Arena, which currently fields only a JV team, is expected to have a varsity squad next season. Two others teams, which will be named soon, are also thinking about making the NCL III their home. Stay tuned.
Showdown matches (non-football) — Kelseyville beat Clear Lake in five sets on Thursday in a battle of undefeated NCL I varsity volleyball squads while Middletown shut out St. Helena, also on Thursday, in a battle of undefeated girls soccer teams.
Cross country kudos — To Kelseyville’s Yareli Lozano, who has three wins in three races this season. She runs again Wednesday at Highland Springs against Lower Lake, Middletown and host Clear Lake.
Eight-man win — Middletown’s junior varsity football team agreed to play an eight-man game with Upper Lake prior to the Upper Lake-Roseland Prep varsity contest on Saturday in Upper Lake and the Mustangs dominated, winning 51-16. The Middletown JVs are coached by Airic Guerrero, a former Upper Lake varsity coach.
Banged up — While the Middletown Mustangs rolled past St. Vincent 41-0 on Saturday, their fourth straight victory, they lost starting running backs Drake Harbison and Isaiah Moore to high ankle sprains. Their status for this week’s game at Cloverdale is up in the air.
