Warriors break Broncos 44-10

Homecoming is always a great atmosphere full of past and present students, guests, floats and recognition, but was the Warrior football game a mirage? The Fallbrook Warriors looked like a new team on the night filled with opening ceremonies for the new field and moments honoring Marty Hauck. The team hosted Rancho Bernardo for this special Homecoming night and came away with a win. The score of the game was 44-10.

The Warrior defense played great as usual, causing turnovers and swarming to the ball. The real excitement was the Warrior offense, which sparked with Michael Leonard as quarterback. Rancho Bernardo made many mistakes and Fallbrook capitalized all of them to ride the Broncos out of town.

The Fallbrook defense took the field first for the Warriors. During this drive, Lyle Ducker and Colin Perry put early pressure on the quarterback, leading to an immediate punt. The Warriors’ first offensive drive, which began at the Bronco 35, was successful. Leonard had a 12-yard pass to Nick Hayes which led to a 35-yard field goal to Rogelio Zamudio. This first score gave early momentum which was key to the Warriors’ victory.

Zamudio then kicked off into the end zone, resulting in a touchback. The Warrior defense came out again and had some great hits by Daniel Kressin on their way to another three and out. The Warriors then received the punt and began their scoring drive from their own 36 yard line. This drive was highlighted by solid running by Mitchell Salazar and a phenomenal 38-yard touchdown catch and throw from Leonard to Marquis Sumpter. This touchdown made the score 10-0 to end the first quarter.

The Broncos had the ball to begin the second quarter but Ducker helped the defense to maintain the shutout and force Rancho Bernardo to punt. Fallbrook’s next possession had hard running by Salazar for 10 yards, but the drive stalled and Zamudio punted.

Rancho Bernardo’s offense began a nice drive, but after bad snaps they put themselves in a hole. On the assuming play Cormac Kenan recovered a fumble, giving the ball back to Fallbrook. The Warriors’ first play of the series was a short pass from Leonard to Hayes, which ended up going 66 yards before being caught at the 4 yard line. Then, Dewayne Mitchell finished off the drive by running off right tackle on a stretch play for a touchdown, which made the score 17-0. The first half concluded with the score 17-0.

The second half began with an unsuccessful series by Fallbrook which ended because of an interception. The Broncos took advantage of the turnover and got their first score, which made the score 17-7. Fallbrook’s next possession was highlighted by a 20-yard catch by Aaron Atkins from Leonard and a 24-yard rush by Hayes, yet the drive ended after the Broncos applied pressure on Leonard, forcing the Warriors to punt.

Zamudio punted to Rancho Bernardo’s own 4 yard line. The defense took the field and sacked the quarterback in the end zone, forcing a safety call and making the score 19-7. After the safety, the Warriors got the ball back. On this drive, Leonard had two rushes for 28 yards, a 21-yard rush by Salazar and a 12-yard pass from Leonard to Atkins for a touchdown. After a missed PAT, the score was 25-7, ending the third quarter.

The fourth quarter began as the defense once again stalled the Broncos and forced them to punt to TJ Sumpter. Sumpter returned the kick like Reggie Bush as he went back and forth returning the ball all the way to the Bronco 13. The Warriors then put in their second string and Saber Youman headed the offense.

On the first play, Youman bulleted a pass to Nathan Salyers for a touchdown. After an unsuccessful PAT, the score was 31-7. Rancho Bernardo’s possession ended abruptly as Jake Ware intercepted the ball and returned it 39 yards to the 1 yard line. This interception led to a quarterback sneak and a touchdown by Youman. The score was now 38-7.

The next Bronco offensive play led to another fumble recovery by Kenan to give the Warriors the ball again in scoring position. Jeremy Hanson had two rushes for 13 yards, which led to Matthew Napier rushing the ball into the end zone. Ivan Rojas then entered the game to kick the PAT and kickoff.

Despite an unsuccessful PAT the score was 44-7. Rancho Bernardo had one last possession, which resulted in some yardage even though there were two sacks made by Jake Krok and Zach Brickell. However, the Broncos got a field goal when their all-star kicked a 52-yard field goal to make the final score 44-10.

The Warriors played a great game and earned a much-needed victory before entering league play. They look to earn their third victory this Friday at Rancho Buena Vista. The game begins at 7:30 p.m. Go Warriors!

Junior varsity 5-0

The junior varsity football team also played host to the Rancho Bernardo Broncos last Friday. They won the game by a score of 10-0.

The game had very little scoring but was highlighted by a field goal by Brady Harrington, wonderful plays by Erik Rodriquez and Dylan Newman and a touchdown run by Josh Campos. Despite having early struggles by the Warrior offense, they finally improved when it mattered most in order to guarantee a win.

The team, coached by Coach Madden, conquered the Broncos to secure a 5-0 record. The JV Warriors will play this Friday at 5 p.m. against Rancho Buena Vista and look to continue their unbeaten record.