LAKEPORT >> Watching their quarterback get ejected was tough enough, but when the Clear Lake Cardinals lost All-League running back Rodrigo Lupercio to an injury midway through the first half, the writing was on the wall as the Colusa RedHawks rolled to a 28-0 victory in the varsity football season opener for both teams on Friday night at Don Owens Stadium.
Quarterback Chris White’s varsity debut didn’t survive the second quarter as he was tossed out of the game for allegedly kicking a Colusa player, according to Clear Lake head coach Mark Cory.
“I didn’t see it happen, I only know what he (White) told me,” Cory said. “He said he was trying to jump over him and he did kick him, but there was nothing malicious about it.”
White will have to sit out next week’s away game against Pierce because of the ejection.
Not long after White left the game, Lupercio suffered a lower leg injury, according to Cory. “It might have been the ankle, I’m not sure. He went to the hospital to have it checked.
“It was kind of like the Twilight Zone a little bit,” Cory added. “Those are two of my top players.” Clear Lake (0-1) generated only 105 yards of offense and moved the ball inside Colusa’s 20-yard line once, that possession ending with a lost fumble in the second half.
While the offense struggled mightily without White and Lupercio, Cory said the Clear Lake defense made a game of it.
“My kids played hard,” Cory said. “That’s the type of game that could have easily been 57-0, but my guys wouldn’t let it happen.”
Colusa led 7-0 after one quarter, 14-0 at halftime and 28-0 through three quarters.
Lupercio left the game with 32 yards on eight carries. Preston Jones and Tj Marcks registered sacks for the Cardinals.
Colusa won the junior varsity game 41-13.
In other football action Friday:
K’ville 22, Ber. Christian 12
At Kelseyville, the Kelseyville Knights walked off the field with their first win of the season, but that walk took place midway through the third quarter after Berean Christian asked that the non-league game be stopped.
“They lost two or three guys (to injuries) and were down to 12 players,” Kelseyville coach Erick Larsen said.
The Walnut Creek school isn’t fielding a JV team this season and the Eagles began the night with only 15 varsity players. They’re job isn’t going to get any easier next Friday when they return home to play Middletown.
Kelseyville (1-1) had the ball deep in Berean Christian territory when the game was called.
“We were getting ready to score again,” Larsen said.
Quarterback Alex Garcia ran for one touchdown and passed for another, a 55-yard strike to Robert Chavez, as Kelseyville built a 22-6 halftime lead. Sandwiched between those two scores was a touchdown run by Jordi Lopez, who also rushed for a pair of two-point conversions.
Berean Christian’s two touchdowns came on a long pass to standout wide receiver Jayden Jackson and a Jackson kickoff return to open the second half.
“We got burned by the long ball a couple of times,” Larsen said. “That wide receiver (Jackson) made some real nice catches.”
Zack Watkins intercepted two passes for Kelseyville, one of them stopping the Eagles inside the Knights’ 5-yard line.
“It was definitely a better effort for us,” Larsen said when asked to compare Friday’s outing with a 40-32 season-opening loss to Stellar Prep a week earlier in Oakland. “The defensive line play was much improved.”
Individual game statistics weren’t available.
M’town 28, Hercules 0
At Hercules, Drake Harbison rushed for two touchdowns and RH Hess passed for two more as the Middletown Mustangs dominated their season opener against the Hercules Titans (0-2).
“We got off to kind of a slow start, but once we got the running game going it opened up the passing game,” Middletown coach Bill Foltmer said. “It was a good win on the road.”
Foltmer said the Mustangs (1-0) came into the game with the modest goal of simply playing better than they did against Clear Lake a week earlier during a scrimmage at Lakeport.
“We did that,” he said.
Harbison scored on a 5-yard run in the first quarter and on a 3-yard run in the second quarter to give the Mustangs a 14-0 lead. Hess connected with Nash Field for an 11-yard score later in the first half to make it 21-0.
Middletown’s final touchdown was another 11-yard pass, this time from Hess to Nico Barrio, in the fourth quarter.
Casey Chicoine converted all of his extra-point kicks.
“Harbison was a little tentative in the scrimmage, but not tonight,” Foltmer said of his senior running back who got off to a great start a year ago until a high ankle sprain derailed his season. “I think he’s back.”
Harbison finished with 53 yards on nine carries while Field, Middletown’s fullback, had 49 yards on nine carries.
Hess made his first varsity start behind center and was 8-for-12 for 108 yards, two TDs and no interceptions.
The Middletown defense allowed Hercules to cross midfield only once, and that was in the second half. Among the standouts were middle linebackers DillonTingle and Brad Clevenger and defensive backs Field and Harbison.
“Defensively we were solid,” Foltmer said.
The only turnover of the game was a fumble recovered by Tingle. Harbison had two of the Mustangs’ four sacks. Field and Greyson Rockwell had the others.
The Mustangs are on the road again next Friday when they visit Berean Christian (Walnut Creek).
Carson City 34, Lower Lake 27
At Carson City, Nev., quarterback Elijah Hernandez and wide receiver Darian James hooked up for three touchdowns in the first half, but the Lower Lake Trojans couldn’t protect a 27-6 lead midway through the third quarter and lost to the Carson City Senators in the season opener for both teams.
The Senators (1-0) scored 28 unanswered points in the second half, all four of their touchdowns coming on running plays.
“We played three championship quarters, played great offense, defense and special teams,” Lower Lake coach Justin Gaddy said. “They didn’t beat us, we beat ourselves.”
Lower Lake was still clinging to a 27-26 lead midway through the fourth quarter when it gambled on a fourth-down play at its own 36-yard line and failed to convert. The Senators took over and, with the help of a Lower Lake horse collar penalty, punched the ball into the end zone with 3:11 left and added the two-point conversion to go up 34-27, their first lead of the game.
It was the exact opposite situation in the first half when the Trojans moved the ball at will. Hernandez found James on scoring strikes of 17 and 22 yards to cap each of Lower Lake’s first two possessions and give the Trojans a 13-0 lead.
Carson closed to 13-6 on a 66-yard touchdown run with 13 seconds left in the first quarter.
Lower Lake caught a big break midway through the second quarter when Carson City was called for roughing the kicker as the Trojans were punting the ball. Given new life and a new set of downs, Lower Lake made the most of it, scoring two plays later on a 14-yard pass from Hernandez to James. Hernandez ran in the conversion to make it 21-6.
Lower Lake’s defense held late in the first half as Carson City drove from deep in its own territory to the Trojans’ 10-yard line before fumbling the ball away. It was the second costly lost fumble for the Senators, who also misfired on a punt early in the first quarter to set up Lower Lake’s initial score.
The Trojans (0-1) continued to build their lead in the second half, taking the third-quarter kickoff and marching 67 yards, the final seven coming on a Hernandez keeper to make it 27-6.
Carson answered with a 65-yard drive capped by a 15-yard run to close to 27-13 and scored again in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter to cut Lower Lake’s lead to 27-20.
Hernandez and James hooked up for what appeared to be a fourth touchdown three plays later only to have the 85-yard pass negated by a penalty for an illegal block. Lower Lake was eventually forced to punt from the back of its end zone and Carson parlayed great field position into a quick touchdown but missed the extra point with 7:42 remaining, leaving the Trojans with a 27-26 lead.
For a first effort, Gaddy said the Trojans learned a lot about themselves, especially areas that need addressing in practice.
“We didn’t have a scrimmage this year (because of the Mendocino Complex fires), so this was our scrimmage, our first practice game,” he said. “We’re finding out where we’re at and that’s good.”
The season-opening loss spoiled a big night by Hernandez in his first varsity start. He completed 18 of 33 passes for 256 yards and the three TDs while also rushing for a team-best 42 yards and another score.
“It was a good game, a good start for him, but we have to improve and we will,” Gaddy said.
James had 84 yards on six receptions, three of them for touchdowns, while Diego Gonzalez caught four passes for 86 yards.
Cole Doud sparked the Lower Lake defense with three sacks.
