By Alex Gonzalez
(San Gabriel) — South Pasadena running back Rudy Murillo rushed for a team high 218 yards and a touchdown leading the Tigers to a 49-40 win over the San Gabriel Matadors Friday night at Matador stadium.
After two quick scores early in the first quarter, it looked like that the Tigers couldn’t find an answer to stop a high-flying Matador offense.
However, as South Pas head coach Marty Konrad put it, “It’s four quarters of football.” He did not let his team hang their head.
“We keep our composure as a staff,” said Konrad. “We tell our kids to stay calm. A lot of things will go wrong, they’re going to get a big play and you just got to hang in there.”
No matter what the San Gabriel offense did, the Tigers found a way to come back. Matador running back Joey Mayorga ran around, through, and away from the SP defense totaling for 179 yards and two touchdowns.
“We have a scrappy bunch,” said Konrad. “A little smoke and mirrors and these guys play hard and we pulled it out.”
The “scrappy bunch” bounced back from whatever SG threw at them. When the Matadors drove down the field and scored, the Tigers did not roll over and give in.
Tigers quarterback David Madrid led the his offense in passing, completing 12-19 passes for 159 yards with three touchdowns.
Madrid completed two pass plays for 23 and 35 yards the went for six before the half. He added one more early in the fourth quarter when he connected with Nico Sullivan for 31 yards.
“He had some great passes, he had some really great throws,” said Konrad of Madrid. “He’s a competitor.”
Even with the loss, San Gabriel head coach Jude Oliva feels that his team is on the right track but there are things to fix for the Matadors.
“When you make mistakes and give opportunities to a good team they will capitalize on them,” said Oliva.
The two biggest mistakes that the Matadors committed were touchdown calls. The first call was when Mayorga caught a screen pass and ran 90 yards. But what he didn’t see was that there was a block in the back that overturned the touchdown.
The second was when Valenzuela connected on a deep pass for the score. But that play was called back for holding.
“We have a few things to clean up,” said Oliva “But we’re on the right track. But that’s what the Pre-season is for. It looks promising.”
The Matadors look to move pass the defeat when they travel to San Dimas for a semi-final rematch against the Saints. For South Pasadena, they look to stay perfect when they travel to Glendale to play host to Hoover.
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