The Sunnyvale Sun

Sports

Fremont needs all of its 41 points for win

By BRAD WALL

After getting shut out by Willow Glen, the Fremont Firebirds needed their offense to make an appearance at Diesner Field if they were to have any shot against the Del Mar Dons.

"Last week was like a bomb going off in my face," said head coach Ron Demonner of the way his team played against Willow Glen.

In the Firebirds thrilling 41-40 victory over Del Mar, their offense did more than just show up as they were able to march the ball up and down the field at will against the Dons.

However, in a match-up that saw the teams combine for 81 points, it was the defense that made the big plays at the end.

"The heart of what we are doing is going to be our offensive and defensive lines," said Demonner.

Nursing a 34-28 lead with 2:55 left in the game, the Firebirds had the Dons bottled up at their own 19-yard line. After stuffing running back Steven Salerno, the Firebirds forced two straight incomplete passes from quarterback Anthony Cukar setting the stage for the Firebirds defense to make a game-saving play.

Fortunately for the Firebirds, linebackers Angel Valencia, Sonny Perez and Donny Mena and the rest of their defense was up to the challenge, as Cukar was sacked on fourth down.

One play later running back Pat Washington rumbled through the left side of the line for his fifth touchdown of the game, giving the Firebirds a 41-28 with under two minutes to play.

Game over.

Well, not quite.

After a 20-yard kick-off return by Salerno put the Dons at their 30-yard line, Cukar threw the ball across the field to wide receiver Tim Stanislao, who then heaved the ball downfield to a streaking Salerno. Fifty-five yards later the Dons had a first-and-goal at the Firebirds 5-yard line.

Cukar hit Bob Schooler with a 5-yard touchdown pass on the next play, and all of a sudden with 1:17 left in the game the Dons were down just 41-34.

Unfortunately for the Dons, the ensuing onside kick was recovered by the Firebirds with 1:14 left to play.

Game over.

Well, not quite.

Firebirds quarterback Daunti Mills, who brilliantly operated the spread offense throughout most of the game, made his only real mistake when he fumbled the ball on the first play. The Dons recovered at their own 44-yard line, and with 1:08 left in the game they had new life and the Firebirds needed their defense to step up one more time.

Cukar, who was making his second career start, made the two biggest plays of his life.

First, avoiding a sure sack, he scrambled 19 yards before taking a bone-jarring hit out of bounds. Thanks to the late hit penalty, the Dons had the ball at the Firebirds 22-yard line.

"[This was] the biggest step for him as a quarterback," said Dons head coach Eric Buran.

Cukar hit Stanislao with a beautiful pass on a fade route for a 22-yard touchdown, and all of a sudden the Dons were down 41-40 with a chance to tie or take the lead.

For the Dons, the choice was easy.

"Going for a tie doesn't do us any good," said Buran. "They have to learn we have to do things right to get a win."

With one play to decide the game, the Dons handed the ball to their bull-like running back Michael Toso. The Firebirds defense swarmed on him as soon as he got the ball, stopping him in his tracks and finally securing the win.

Demonner said he was immensely proud of the way his team bounced back from its opening game.

"The things I'm not proud of are decreasing and the things I am proud of are increasing," said Demonner.

For the Firebirds, the star of the game was Washington. He finished with over 180 yards rushing and five touchdowns.

The Firebirds will host San Jose on Sept. 22, 7:30 p.m.

Knights roll, 49-6

Jacob Bliss scored three of five first-half touchdowns for The King's Academy during a 49-6 drubbing of California School for the Deaf on Sept. 14 at home.

Bliss scored on runs of 32 and 40 yards, then hooked up with quarterback Sam Sussman on a 55-yard TD pass, as the Knights rolled to their second win of the season. The Knights can improve to 3-0 with a win against Sobrato of Morgan Hill on Sept. 23, 6 p.m. at Live Oak.

Senior Steve Lim ran for two scores for the Knights, who led 21-0 after one quarter and 35-6 at halftime. Senior Colin Foshay and sophomore Ben Sussman also ran to paydirt for King's. Senior Daniel DeTrinidad drilled seven PAT kicks and now is 10 for 10 overall.

Wilcox loses close one

San Benito made 10 first-quarter points hold up against Wilcox in a non-league game Sept. 15 in Hollister. Justice Patterson ran 22 yards for a third-quarter touchdown and Jin Kim kicked the extra point, but San Benito yielded nothing else in a 10-7 win.

Patterson gained 196 all-purpose yards, including 91 rushing yards on 19 carries. Senior linebackers Vince Salinas (16 tackles) and Andrew Reyes (11) paced the Wilcox defense. Senior safety Antione Briggs and junior linebacker Matt Turituri were involved in nine stops apiece.

Wilcox (1-1) returns home for a non-league game against Scotts Valley Sept. 22 at 7:30 p.m.

Mike Barnhart contributed to this story.