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Photograph by Skye Dunlap
Receiver Tim Moore fights for yardage after pulling in a pass from Bryce Allen in Saratoga's 38-13 win over Cupertino.
Falcons roll to win over 'Tino
Lynbrook, Prospect both nailed victories
By Dick Sparrer
Kurt Heinrich took a little roller coaster last Thursday night.
But the Saratoga football coach wasn't riding the Giant Dipper at the Boardwalk, or even the Grizzlie at Great America.
No, Heinrich was riding the roller coaster of highs and lows as his club battled Cupertino in the 1999 season opener.
Heinrich and the Falcons were riding high with a commanding 24-0 lead at halftime, but they found themselves in a downward roll in the second half when the Pioneers battled back for a pair of touchdowns.
Saratoga finished on a high note, scoring a fourth quarter touchdown to pull out a 38-13 victory over Cupertino in the season opener for each club.
The Falcons were really never in any danger of losing the decision. Saratoga scored three touchdowns and a field goal to lead 24-0 at intermission, then quickly answered Cupertino's first score with a 97-yard kick-off return for a TD by Nolan Ng.
But more than the score, it was the demeanor that was more of a concern to Heinrich.
"In the first half they played very hard, executed very well and were very focused," he said of his Falcons. "But they lost their focus a bit in the second half."
The coach was not pleased with the momentary letdown, but he was pleased with his club's second-half turnaround.
"They regained their steadiness and finished up fairly strong," said the coach. "It was a very pleasing win."
Ng, Jason Choe and Robert Meng led a solid offensive attack for the Falcons.
Meng, who carried eight times for 40 yards in the win, scored Saratoga's first touchdown of the season when he scooted 11 yards for a TD in the first quarter.
Derek Cartmell blasted over from the one for a score in the second period, then Ng took off on a 12-yard TD run later in the period.
Mike Cook, who converted after the first three touchdowns, booted a 22-yard field goal to give the Falcons their 24-0 lead at the half.
Photograph by Skye Dunlap
Saratoga's Mike Robinson helps signal a first down for the Falcons.
Cupertino scored in the third period, but Ng got the points right back with his 97-yard kick- off return. Ng finished the night with two carries for 30 yards and caught two passes for 45 yards.
The Pioneers scored again, but this time it was Choe answering back with a 40-yard touchdown run. Choe carried four times for 51 yards and snagged three passes for 67 yards.
Senior quarterback Bryce Allen hooked up on nine of 15 passes for 129 yards and also scrambled for 21 yards on six carries. Allen's favorite targets were Choe, Ng, Erik Raich and Tim Moore.
Leading the offensive charge up front were senior guards Chris Yamaguchi and Kelly Mathew, junior tackles Jon Moshier and Richard Liu and senior center Jason Findley.
"The offensive line did a great job," said Heinrich of the men up front. "We're going to be undersized an awful lot this year, but we're quick."
"And (Findley) is just a rock in there," he added.
The coach was also pleased with the effort of his club's defense.
"The defense played very well," he said. "Cupertino had a really good running back (A.J. Martinez), and the defense did a pretty good job of containing him. Coach (Kevin) Tanner put together a good defensive scheme."
Noseguard Troy Cowen led the defensive effort with 15 tackles. He also forced a fumble and recovered a fumble.
"He was a real force for us," said Heinrich.
The coach also praised the work of linebackers Todd Anderson, Andrew Bosworth and Cartmell, who were all in on 10 tackles or more. Bosworth had a couple of quarterback sacks, and Cartmell recorded a fumble.
The Falcons will take their 1-0 record on the road to visit Lynbrook on Sept. 18, 1:30 p.m. The Vikings are coming off a 28-24 win over Westmont.
"They're very well coached," said Heinrich of the Vikings. "They have a ground it out attack offense with that wishbone they run, and they really try to shorten the clock."
Vikes top Warriors
Lynbrook opened the year with an exciting 28-24 come-from-behind win over Westmont on the Warriors' home field on Thursday night.
Westmont jumped out to a 16-0 halftime lead with a couple of touchdowns and a field goal in the second quarter, but the Vikings scored twice in the third period and twice more in the fourth to pull out the win.
The Vikings, who are led this season by fullback Barry Arato, quarterback Matt Fratus and two-way standout Josh Huizar (linebacker, offensive line), held on for the win as Westmont scored a TD in the final period, only to finish four points short.
The clubs battled through a scoreless first quarter before sophomore tailback Tony Perez scored Westmont's first touchdown of the season on a four-yard run. Ben Holmes kicked the extra point, and the Warriors were up 7-0.
But not for long. Senior quarterback Tony Oka went to the air to find Adam Antolin for 16 yards and a score.
Holmes came on before the half to part the uprights with a 20-yard field goal, and the Warriors held a commanding 16-0 lead at intermission.
But the Vikings cut the lead to 16-13 with two TDs in the third period, then scored two more in the fourth.
Westmont added one final touchdown on a two-yard blast by Mike Hilbert. Oka ran in for the two-point conversion, but Westmont came up four points short of the hard-earned victory.
Westmont will be gunning for its first win of the young season on Sept. 17, 7:15 p.m., when the Warriors host Fremont in a nonleague game. The Firebirds lost 20-12 to Prospect last Thursday.
Panthers win
Prospect, like Lynbrook, came through with a come-from-behind victory to knock off Fremont 20-12 last week.
The Panthers trailed Fremont 6-0 at the half, but outscored the Firebirds 20-6 in the second half to pull out the victory.
A couple of touchdown runs by Saladin Washington in the third period matched the two TDs scored by Fremont. Washington ran one in from the eight, then scored on a five-yard run. Donald Austin ran in for the two-point conversion after the second score, and Prospect took a 14-12 lead into the final period.
Prospect closed out the scoring in the fourth on a three-yard TD run by Ryan Sainsbury.
Washington had a big night for Prospect, rambling for 164 yards on just 14 carries.
The Panthers will try to make it two straight when they visit Mt. Pleasant on Sept. 17, 3:30 p.m. The Cardinals lost 49-14 to Piedmont Hills in their opener.
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Saratoga, California Since 1955
