Almaden Resident
Sports
Sunseri a one-man wrecking crew for Chargers
By Eli Segall
When the Leland defense swings its crane, lineman Anthony Sunseri is its wrecking ball.
In the Chargers 42-19 victory over Gunderson on Oct. 13, the Leland senior put on a display of bone-crunching hits that reverberated through the stands. He flattened anyone who stood in his path, registering five tackles, one forced fumble and countless quarterback pressures in the home field win.
"Tony's an absolute sparkplug," said Leland head coach Jason Tenner. "He's a real hard hitter, a real throwback."
"My concern is that one day he'll knock himself out," he added, only half-jokingly.
The Chargers racked up 421 all-purpose yards Friday but relied heavily on its running game; six different players carried the ball a total of 41 times for 228 yards against Gunderson. Leland made only eight pass attempts, which was five more than in last week's victory over Westmont.
"We have some really good weapons running the football," Tenner said. "But down the stretch we need to throw more."
To start the game, Leland kicked off to the Grizzlies and came out flying. Sunseri led the way with two big hits, including a loss of three yards on the first play. Gunderson punted, and three plays later quarterback Ricky Battipede zipped a 24-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Beigibing. Battipede kicked the first of four extra points, putting the Chargers up 7-0 at 8:26 of the first quarter.
Gunderson began the ensuing drive from its own 47. Tackles by seniors Adam Ondi, Jon Erickson, Daniel Schroeder, Lance Gemette and Shay Taylor and junior Michael Ledeit forced the offense to fight for every inch. However, 15- and 22-yard runs put the team in scoring distance, and at 3:10 of the first quarter the Grizzlies evened the field.
Two punts later, it was the Chargers turn. A 20-yard gain by running back Ondi brought Leland onto Gunderson's side of the field. Senior Negad Zaky pulled in a key first-down pass from Battipede, who completed 5 of 7 passes for 104 yards. Offensive lineman R.J. Singer opened a hole for Gemette, who ran the ball to the 5-yard line, and on the next play Gemette scored the first of two touchdowns, at 6:41 of the second quarter.
Gunderson began to have problems advancing the ball. Jeff Sommer, a 6-foot-1, 175-pound junior, crushed the running back at the line of scrimmage; linebacker Brighton Scala broke through the line for one of his four tackles; Ledeit also took a crack at the running back, stopping him cold in his tracks. On fourth and five, the Grizzlies went for the first down but hit a 400-pound wall: Singer and linebacker Roland Li.
On the ensuing possession, Zaky pulled in a 32-yard bomb while smothered by a Gunderson cornerback. On the next snap, junior Kevin Krail darted through a hole opened by Gemette for a 22-yard touchdown. Battipede ran in a two-point conversion, which brought the score to 21-7 at 2:32 of the second quarter.
Gemette and Krail both turned in strong offensive and defensive performances. Each earned more than 100 all-purpose yards and they combined for seven tackles.
"Our running backs ran hard and blocked well for each other," Tenner said. "It wears the other team down."
The second half started with a boom, as offensive lineman David Yates leveled an opposing player and cleared a path for Ondi, who earned 98 rushing yards on the day. A punishing block by Louis Devoken, a 6-foot-2, 240-pound junior, left another gaping hole for Ondi, who ran it 38 yards to the 14. Three plays later, at 9:13 of the third quarter, Gemette carried the ball for a 3-yard touchdown, which brought the lead to 28-7.
Gunderson launched two big passes and narrowed the lead to 28-13 at 7:52 of the third, but Leland marched right back. After 14 snaps, which included big plays from Gemette, Li and junior Paul Barota, Ondi finished the 60-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown. Leland went up 35-13 with only 2.6 seconds remaining in the third.
Gunderson went on the offensive, but a sack by Erickson resulted in a 10-yard loss. On the next play Sunseri knocked the ball loose from the quarterback; a Gunderson player recovered, but Sommer crashed into him for a 12-yard loss.
The Grizzlies were forced to punt. Any plans of mounting a defense was kicked to the curb when Krail returned the ball 45 yards for a touchdown, which gave the Chargers a 42-13 lead at 9:08 of the fourth.
Gunderson pushed downfield, carrying the ball for some big gains and connecting on two passes. The Grizzlies rushed in a touchdown at 7:25 of the fourth quarter, but the game deadlocked after that.
Leland's record improved to 4-2 overall, and the team remains undefeated in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League at 3-0. The Chargers visit Del Mar (0-3 in the division, 0-6 overall, on Oct. 20, 3:30 p.m.
