Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma
Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma
Warriors Alan Leon and Matt Wilson make a big hit putting the Longhorns back several yards in the Oct. 29 varsity match up.
The Warriors and Marcus Washington push ahead into the postseason with their win over Rancho Buena Vista.
JV Warrior Kyle Collings tackles the Longhorn ball carrier in the end zone resulting in a safety for Fallbrook, Oct, 29. Fallbrook JV beat Rancho Buena Vista 37-14.
Fallbrook's Preston McCarthy puts an exclamation point on the JV win over the Longhorns with an interception that he took all the way into the endzone in the final minutes of the game.
Joe Naiman
Village News Reporter
Fallbrook High School's football team closed out its regular season with an Oct. 29 victory over Rancho Buena Vista, but the Warriors' season will continue in the playoffs.
The 34-7 victory at RBV gave Fallbrook a 4-6 regular-season record, and the Warriors were 2-3 in Valley League competition which was worth fourth place in the six-team standings. The Oct. 30 CIF playoff seeding and selection meeting utilized strength of schedule as well as win-loss record, and Fallbrook was given the fourth seed in the Division V playoffs. The Warriors have a first-round bye, and the winner of the Nov. 5 game between Escondido Charter and San Ysidro will travel to Fallbrook for the Nov. 12 quarterfinal.
The Warriors held a 21-7 halftime lead against Rancho Buena Vista. "We played the way we're capable of playing," said Fallbrook head coach Troy Everhart. "I was excited for the kids because it's nice for them to show people what they're capable of doing."
Although the Warriors failed to obtain a first down on a first-quarter possession, the punt return was muffed and Fallbrook junior Kaleb Collings recovered the ball. The Warriors leveraged the turnover into a scoring drive which concluded with a 2-yard touchdown run by sophomore Chris Bausch and an extra point kicked by sophomore Alan Leon.
Fallbrook's lead expanded to 14-0 in the second quarter when junior Marcus Washington scored on a 57-yard run and Leon kicked the conversion. The Longhorns' only touchdown was also in the second period, a two-yard run by junior Angelino Trapasso which was followed by senior Victor Ramirez kicking the conversion.
Fallbrook's first touchdown in the second quarter showed that the Warriors could produce a big play. The Warriors' second touchdown late in the period showed Fallbrook's clock management success. "I thought we did a great job," Everhart said.
Bausch ran two yards for that score and Leon kicked the extra point. The only third-period score was a one-yard run by Bausch, although the kick was unsuccessful. In the fourth quarter, sophomore Marquise Washington ran 58 yards for a touchdown and Leon made the conversion attempt.
"I just felt that the kids just played super," Everhart said. "I was really pleased with the way the kids performed."
The Longhorns completed only three of 17 passing attempts, and those three completions gained a total of 15 yards. RBV ran 28 times for a net 122 yards. "We had a bunch of tackles for losses," Everhart said.
"Overall, I thought the performance was really good. It was really good top to bottom," Everhart said. "The kids did a nice job."
The 27-point margin of victory matches Fallbrook's largest historical advantage over Rancho Buena Vista, whose first-ever game in 1987 was a 35-8 loss at Fallbrook. The Warriors had not beaten RBV since 2008 and had not defeated the Longhorns in Vista since 2005.
The top four seeds in the Division V playoffs received byes. "We haven't been in since '16. I don't care where the seed was," Everhart said.
That is 2015-16. The 2015 Warriors lost in the second round of the playoffs. Between 2016 and 2019 the Warriors won four games, including one by forfeit. Fallbrook had a 2-3 record for the 2020-21 season which did not include playoffs.
Seven of Fallbrook's 2021-22 regular-season opponents will see action in the CIF playoffs. Fallbrook began this season with a loss to University City, who was given the second seed in the Division IV playoffs, and then lost to Division III third seed Santa Fe Christian. The Division III fourth seed, Ramona, won the Valley League championship. Valley Center, which shared second in the league standings, is the fifth seed in the Division II playoffs. Imperial Valley League champion Brawley, who defeated the Warriors in overtime in Brawley, is the Division III sixth seed.
San Pasqual, the only non-playoff team to defeat Fallbrook in the regular season, had a 6-4 overall record including a share of second in the Valley League standings, and is in Division II. Rancho Buena Vista is the Division IV fifth seed, and the Warriors also defeated San Ysidro in the regular season this year.
"Our strength of schedule speaks for itself," Everhart said. "A lot of them are four seeds or higher. It was a very difficult schedule, and the kids played their tails off."
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