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Panthers roll to win; Warriors, Falcons fall
By Dick Sparrer
Prospect and Willow Glen were on opposite ends of the spectrum in football games last week.
The Panthers were rolling to a 36-6 victory over Cupertino, while the Rams were getting rolled 63-0 by powerful Oak Grove.
That was last week.
But this week it's a whole new ballgame. The Panthers and Rams will square off in the first game of the season in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.
Willow Glen enters the game as one of the division title favorites, despite the outcome against Oak Grove last Friday night, but it's Prospect who enters the game with a perfect 3-0 nonleague record.
The Rams, who will host the Panthers on Oct. 1, 3:30 p.m., opened the season with tight wins over Lincoln and Silver Creek before falling to the Eagles. The Panthers, meanwhile, have beaten Fremont, Mt. Pleasant and Cupertino.
Senior quarterback David Macchi will lead the Rams into the Friday afternoon game. The talented quarterback is supported in the backfield by hard-charging senior running back Leon Thomas.
Heading up the Prospect assault is senior quarterback Jordan Williams, who likes to throw to senior wide out Andrew Heling. Saladin Washington leads the running attack for the Panthers.
The three Panthers were stars for Prospect in last Thursday night's lopsided win over Cupertino.
Williams hooked up on six of nine passes for 149 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Panthers to the win. Heling pulled in three passes for 53 yards, two of them for TDs, and Washington carried 11 times for 127 yards.
Prospect jumped out to a quick lead when Williams hit Chad Holan for 55 yards and a first-quarter touchdown. The QB went to Mike Stevens for the two-point conversion, and the Panthers had the early 8-0 lead.
They made it 15-0 moments later when Heling pulled in a 20-yard scoring toss from Williams. Heling kicked the extra point, and the Panthers were rolling.
Williams went to the air to find Brian Shouse for 25 yards and a score in the second period to give the Panthers a comfortable 21-0 lead at intermission.
Prospect went to work again early in the second half when Heling snagged a 26-yard toss from Williams for a TD. Williams went to Ryan Sainsbury for the two-pointer, and the Panthers were up 29-0.
Senior running back Donald Austin capped the scoring for Prospect with a 10-yard TD dash in the fourth quarter. Heling's kick made it 36-0.
The Pioneers managed a touchdown late in the game to avoid the shutout, but Cupertino couldn't do much against the Prospect defense led by Joshua Mattson.
Westmont falls
Sophomore running back Tony Perez had 13 tough carries for 65 hard-earned yards, but the Westmont football team dropped a 40-0 decision to Andrew Hill last Friday night.
The loss dropped the Warriors to 0-3 in the nonleague season. Westmont will gun for its first win of the young season on Oct. 1, 7 p.m., when the Warriors host Pioneer in the opening round of the year in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.
Pioneer is coming off of a 49-0 victory over James Lick. The Mustangs are 1-2 in the preseason.
Senior quarterback Tony Oka will lead Westmont into the opener, working behind an offensive line that features senior Jon Lowe (6 feet 3 inches, 220 pounds) and junior Jason Lucas (6 feet 2 inches, 220 pounds).
Working behind Oka in the backfield are Perez and solid junior tailback Mike Hilbert.
The Pioneer offense is led by talented senior running back Mike Wiens and junior quarterback Tim Scheffer. Favorite targets for Scheffer are wide receiver Brian Davis and tight end Travis Murdock.
Falcons fall
The Saratoga Falcons suffered their first loss of the young football season last Saturday, falling 24-10 to Valley Christian.
The Falcons actually led 10-7 at intermission, but Valley battled back with a couple of touchdowns and a safety in the third quarter and held on to the victory.
The Warriors scored in the first quarter to take the early lead, but the Falcons battled from behind to overtake Valley before the half.
Mike Cook drilled a 31-yard field goal to get the Falcons on the board, and quarterback Bryce Allen gave Saratoga the lead when he raced 20 yards for a touchdown before the half. Cook's extra point kick made it 10-7 at the break.
But the Warriors punched one in early in the third, then scored again on a safety to lead 16-10. Valley added one more score in the third quarter to make the final 24-10.
The Falcons dropped to 2-1 for the year with the loss, but hope to bounce back this week. Saratoga faces a bye in the rugged De Anza Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League, but the Falcons will fill that week with a nonleague game against Los Altos. Saratoga will play host to the Eagles on Oct. 1, 7:30 p.m., at Los Gatos.
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Saratoga, California Since 1955
