Suddenly, however, a Yerba Buena tackler put a jarring hit on Van Wijk and the apparent six points bounced away with the football into the end zone. But before a YB defender could cover it for a touchback, Monta Vista senior Josh Schroeder fell on it for a touchdown.

Ben Lovelace's kick tied the game 14-14. After neither team scored in the fourth period, the Matadors and Aztec Warriors left the Cupertino High field with a season-opening tie.

"We learned some good things about our team tonight," said Mueller, speaking for his entire coaching stuff about the team's defensive grit and offensive balance against a YB team much improved from the team Monta Vista whipped in the 2003 opener.

When seniors Van Wijk and Jarrod Burdett weren't running the ball, senior quarterback Jason Dias was accurate with his passes, including a 13-yard touchdown toss to sophomore Marcus Woo.

The scoring pass came in the second quarter and, along with Lovelace's first PAT kick, sent the teams to halftime tied 7-7. Yerba Buena went ahead 14-7 in the third quarter, before Monta Vista went on its game-tying drive.

Mueller applauded the play of the Matador defense, particularly linebacker Van Wijk, nose guard Delgado and defensive backs Taylor Oberhelman and Jeff Clewett, who intercepted a pass.

The Matadors go on the road looking for their first win against Willow Glen on Sept. 17. Because the Rams' field is under construction, the 3:15 p.m. game will be played at Lincoln, a neighboring San Jose school which has already received a new synthetic playing surface.

Homestead conquers Hill

Senior running back Chris Morris picked up where he left off last season, helping Homestead start the season with a big bang, 48-0 over Andrew Hill.

Morris, a powerful 6-foot, 210-pounder, scored two of his three touchdowns during the Mustangs' 21-point first quarter.

Homestead, which dominated Hill on both sides of the ball, led 35-0 at halftime. Morris, the Offensive Player of the Year in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League's De Anza Division in 2003, scored on short bursts of seven and five yards in the first quarter and tacked on a 1-yard TD run in the third quarter.

Senior quarterback Jake Mecchi passed for two touchdowns. He connected with senior Aaron Hickson on a 25-yard score in the first quarter and Craig Moberg on a 20-yarder in the second period. Mecchi and Hickson also hooked for a two-point conversion that gave Homestead an early 14-0 lead.

Junior running back Jay Atkins and sophomore Matt Powers added short touchdown runs for the Mustangs, who scored all of their points during the first three periods.

Defensive back Tyler Daily doubled as the Mustangs placekicker, booting four PAT kicks. Homestead's defense registered five sacks, with senior linebacker Greg Jackson getting two of them.

The Mustangs expect a better challenge Sept. 17 from another team of Mustangs. Homestead travels to San Bruno for a 7:30 p.m. contest against Capuchino, which saddled Homestead with a 38-35 defeat last season.

Pioneers seek improvement

Looking to recover from a 47-0 loss at Independence, Cupertino travels to San Mateo on Sept. 18, 2:30 p.m., to battle Hillsdale. The Pioneers will strive to get off to a better start than they did last Friday night in San Jose. Cupertino fell behind 20-0 in the first quarter and trailed the 76ers 41-0 at halftime.