Sports Editor
For the first time in program history, the LGHS Varsity Football team advanced to the Division 2-A State Championship. The Wildcats barely fell short to Central Valley Christian on Dec. 9 in Pasadena, 42-45. LG became div. 2-A NorCal champions on Dec. 1, dominating El Cerrito High School 14-6. Leading to this victory, the Wildcats beat Wilcox High School 49-14 to clinch the CCS Division I title.
In the CCS championship matchup, Los Gatos took a strong lead of 42-7 by the end of the first half, with senior Jaylen Thomas contributing four touchdowns and catching a 41-yard pass. Thomas ran for a one-yard touchdown and caught two passes for touchdowns. When Wilcox’s quarterback ran for a 65-yard touchdown, Thomas immediately answered with an 85-yard punt return touchdown. Senior Boxer Kopcsak-Yeung contributed three rushing touchdowns, carrying 15 times for 117 yards. Senior Scott Garwood recovered a fumble and gained 70 yards, with senior Aaron Brin, junior RJ Cannan, and sophomore Beau Musser recovering fumbles as well. Senior Sam Pearman completed seven of seven extra-point kicks.
During the Div. 2-A NorCal matchup, the Wildcats struggled to gain momentum, trailing El Cerrito 0-6 by halftime. In the first two quarters, El Cerrito carried for 172 yards compared to LG’s 12 yards. On a more positive note, the LG defense held El Cerrito to one touchdown and no extra points. In the third quarter, LG scored on a 52-yard drive, with senior quarterback AJ Minyard completing an 11-yard pass to Thomas in the back corner of the endzone, making the score 7-6. El Cerrito got the ball back with 1:39 minutes left in the game, but a fourth-down interception and then touchdown from senior Nate Goldsbury sealed LG’s spot in the state championship game,Senior Nicholas Hobson received 4 passes for a total of 42 yards, junior Owen Panu had one reception for 24 yards, and junior Justin Mazzaferro also had one reception for 11 yards.
Senior Spencer Burg noted how vital LG’s team chemistry was to their successful season: “Our goal is to get better every week, fly around, and have fun — we have been meeting that goal. It helps that we are all so close. It seems like we are brothers, and it is awesome to get to play this long with my guys. Recently, [we] have been clicking, all working to have each other’s backs. I know that if I mess up on a play, the rest of the defense is right behind me to make the tackle.” Burg contributed 101 tackles over the season.
The Wildcats fell just short of clinching the CIF 2-A state title on Dec. 9, losing to Central Valley Christian by only three points. Thomas completed a 36-yard rushing touchdown in the first half, but at halftime, the score was 7-24, a large deficit to make up in two quarters. In the second half, Thomas caught a 63-yard touchdown, Kopcsak-Yeung rushed for a 42-yard touchdown, and Minyard rushed for a 12-yard touchdown. Minyard completed a 24-yard pass to sophomore Max Thomas for a touchdown, cutting CVC’s lead to 10. With under a minute left in regulation, he then threw another 19-yard pass to Panu to bring the score to 42-45. To The Mercury News, Minyard said, “It was in all of our hearts, and we wanted to win it so bad.” Although the Wildcats fell short of a state title, this season has still been record-breaking for the program.
(Sources: MaxPreps, Mercury News)
Categories: School Sports, Sports