MidValleySports.Com

It's still early, but there is plenty for WestCo to be happy about.

(Rowland) – In a battle of former San Antonio foes, it was West Covina who ran their record to 2-0 in the new Hacienda League with a 41-17 win over Rowland.Chris Solomon ran for 115 yards on 14 carries and scored two touchdowns. Solomon ended the night with 241 yards all-purpose yards on the night to help the Bulldogs with valuable field position for most of the night.

West Covina had numerous chances to put the game away early with the Bulldog defense forcing the Raiders to punt on three straight drives after going up 14-0. Unfortunately for West Covina they couldn’t sustain a drive to deliver the knock-out punch in the first quarter.

“We did a good job and ran the ball wall in the first quarter,” said Bulldogs head coach Mike Maggiore. “I wanted to have the team get some confidence and being up 14 points will do that.”

The inability of West Covina to get a larger lead in the first half nearly cost them the momentum heading into halftime. With a one minute and 42 seconds remaining Rowland’s Michael Ball evaded the Bulldogs defense and found Danny McMahan for a 57-yard strike.

With the entire momentum now on the Raiders side, West Covina would answer in one minute and 41 seconds when George Johnson capped off a six-play drive with a seven-yard bootleg touchdown to head into the break 20-7. Anthony Molina made the key play with a great route against Leonardo Freeman who bit on Johnson’s pump fake for a 38-yard gain to give the Bulldogs the ball on the Rowland 10-yard line.

After a 25-yard field goal by Frankie Zuniga to start the second half for the Raiders, West Covina would answer with a heavy dose of Chris Solomon. Of the six plays run during the knock-out drive, Soloman touched the ball five times and accounted for 62 yards. He capped it off with a very physical 17-yard run to the end zone that would allow the Bulldogs to pull away midway through the third quarter.

The normally explosive Rowland offense seemed stymied by West Covina’s defense with the only blemish being on Special Teams. With the game nearing its end, Ervin Crawford took a kick-off 91 yards with two minutes and 11 seconds left in the game to cut the lead to 24 points.

Ball finished the night, nine of 19 for 114 yards in the air with one touchdown and an interception. Ball also rushed for 65 yards on 13 carries. He accounted for 179 yards of the Raiders 232 total yards offense.