Offense, defense combine for solid 21-3 victory
GILROY — Years from now, a road win against Christopher might be something to behold for Live Oak High School and the rest of South Valley’s old guard.
If anything, Friday’s 21-3 victory over the Cougars covered up memories of the Acorns’ five-point opening loss to Gilroy, much like the CHS banners hanging over the ones that read “Mustangs” in Garcia-Elder Sports Complex.
“This win, it boosts our confidence,” Live Oak center Isaac Camarillo said. “Next week’s the El Toro Bowl, so that’s what we’re building up to.”
A week between their 35-30 letdown against Gilroy and their first meeting with Sobrato as El Toro Bowl runners-up, the Acorns had no room for sympathy against the first-year varsity football team from Christopher High School, a 16-player outfit by the end of the game.
Live Oak (1-1) withstood a near-disastrous opening kick-off that led to a 3-0 CHS lead, then wore down the Cougars with bruising inside runs by Cody Van Aken and Blair Zerr and tiring sweeps dialed up for Jacob Montoya and Artie Valencia.
Live Oak’s defense was stingy enough to earn a shutout. Christopher (0-2) gained 120 yards to the Acorns’ 278.
“They did a great job in the second half of taking the ball in the veer and taking it right at us and not messing around,” said Cougars coach Tim Pierleoni, whose team showed progress from last week’s 28-10 loss to Sobrato in trailing 7-3 at halftime. “(Live Oak) made some great adjustments in this game. In the second half, they did a great job.
“Our kids came out with a lot of energy, but, as time went on, we just got tired out.”
Van Aken had a lot to do with that. The 6-foot, 185-pound senior powerback rarely sidestepped or threw a stiff-arm while totaling 143 yards and two touchdowns in 22 carries.
Van Aken carried tacklers into the end zone from two yards out, pushing Live Oak ahead 7-3 with 4:41 left in the second quarter, and added a 3-yard touchdown dive for good measure with less than a minute left in the third.
His longest run came on a 26-yard backdoor trap play in which quarterback Dominic Bejarano bluffed a hand-off to Valencia.
“When the fly sweep is there, it opens up everything,” LOHS coach Jon Michael Porras said. “Last week, it wasn’t working, and that’s why the veer opened up for us inside. … This week, I don’t know. Everything we wanted to do was there.”
Montoya rushed for 39 yards and caught a 13-yard pass from Bejarano for one of the Acorns’ two completions — they didn’t need to pass.
Blair, still battling through torn cartilage in his rib cage, had 60 total yards, including 58 rushing.
“Cody and Blair did spectacular,” Camarillo said. “It’s reason to push harder up front when we know our backs can break off a big run and make big plays.”
It wasn’t always so great. There was tense silence amid the Live Oak crowd after Cougars quarterback Brandon Pickens returned the opening kick-off 94 yards for a would-be touchdown; it was called back to the LOHS 35 because of a penalty. Christopher cashed in with Ruben Martinez’s 22-yard field goal.
The Acorns’ offense sputtered from there. Montoya booted a 26-yard field goal that was nullified by a holding call, then missed the subsequent try from 42 yards out. Their next ended with a turnover on downs, as safety Nic Slater wrapped up Zerr well short of the first-down marker on a play-action pass from Bejarano.
Live Oak finally cashed in with Van Aken’s first score after the Cougars jumped offside on fourth-and-one from the CHS 4-yard line.
The Acorns lost a fumbled exchange midway through the fourth quarter.
“Early on, we just didn’t get the ball in the end zone,” LOHS linebacker Nikki Weber said. “We were owning them; they weren’t getting anything on our defense. They got a field goal, but that was only because of field position.
“Once our offense starting executing better, we just shut them down.”
After Martinez’s field goal, Live Oak defensive coordinator Mike Gemo gathered his troops on the sideline and said, “No more. That’s all they get tonight.”
The Cougars had a chance to make it a one-point game at halftime, but Martinez missed wide left on a 34-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter. Christopher never threatened again.
The Cougars were forced to rely heavily on the pass, especially after fullback /linebacker Dylan Babb went down with a knee injury midway through the game, and Pickens delivered, completing 9 of 23 for 108 yards and no interceptions. The junior found Jorge Ramos, Bryant Cid and Travis Franco for connections of 20-plus yards.
“We were pumped in that first half. We had a couple chances but missed opportunities,” Pickens said. “We’re trying to go with more of a tempo, but it’s hard because we’re losing players to injuries. We already had a small team.”
After a 36-yard kick-off return by Valencia, Live Oak put the game all but out of reach on the first drive of the second half, as Bejarano snaked into the end zone on an 11-yard option keeper.
That’s a play the Acorns will be out to stop next week.
“We have to limit mistakes — no more mistakes — keep executing and be assignment sound on the option against Sobrato,” Weber said of the rival school that took down Leland, one of Live Oak’s Mount Hamilton Division foes, 35-34 Friday. “We need to be assignment-sound. Sobrato’s a good team.”
Pierleoni’s team found out two weeks ago. The Cougars will discover more about themselves this Friday when they travel to Capuchino, the final tune-up for Monterey Bay Athletic League play.
“That’s the whole aim of what we’re trying to do: Get better each week,” Pierleoni said. “We got better this week. Next week, we’ll get a little better, too. We’ve got some talented kids on this team. We just don’t have a lot of them.”
