San Marino QB Andrew Ferraco. (Photo by Wolfman)
By Juan Carlos Salas
(San Marino) – A safety early in the 4th quarter was the game-changer as the San Marino Titans plowed through the Lancers of Bell Gardens, 51-34, in the first round of CIF playoffs Friday night.
After being stopped at the Bell Gardens one, the Titan defense turn the tide of the match, pushing Lancers’ quarterback Charles Ontiveros into his own end zone, and giving the Titans its final lead of the match, 30-28. The safety was part of a second half that resulted in 31-unanswered points for San Marino, including a 27-yard interception return for a touchdown by defensive tackle Alex Knott.
“It was huge, it was huge, that was it,” said San Marino Head Coach Mike Hobbie said of the safety. “That was a real turnaround right there in a matter of two minutes.”
For three quarters however, it didn’t seem as if the game would be the blowout it ended up becoming. Both squads traded touchdowns in the first half with San Marino striking first with a 7-yard rushing touchdown by quarterback Andrew Ferraco.
Bell Gardens pulled even in its subsequent drive, and the Titans regained the lead early in the second quarter after Matt Miller created a fumble in the end zone, which Justin Hill recovered for the touchdown.
The Lancers tied the game at 14 with a 9-yard touchdown run by Aaron Graves going into the half.
After the Bell Gardens took its only lead of the match through a 97-yard kick off return for a touchdown, Ferraco threw a 52-yard touchdown pass to bring the game within a point after a failed extra-point attempt.
A Tyler Spitzer touchdown before the conclusion of the third quarter – his first of two for the night – brought the game even, 28 – 28, after a two-point conversion, and started the 31-point swing that led San Marino to victory.
***San Marino’s first drive of the match results in a fumble recovered by Bell Garden’s Christian Campos.
***A 61-yard run by Christopher Orozco led to Bell Garden’s first touchdown, a 20-yard run by QB Ontiveros.
***Two consecutive pass interference calls were called against the Titans, followed by a third penalty, which eventually allowed a 9-yard touchdown by Aaron Graves, tying the match a 14.
***”I though we were bad in the first half, but we came up big in the second half,” said Hobbie of his defense. “We just started to make adjustments, and put people in better spaces.”
***Scary moment for San Marino as Matt Miller was came out of the game with a back injury. He returned briefly for the second half but didn’t finish the game.
***San Marino’s Justin Hill had an interception late third quarter which brought the Titans within one yard of scoring a touchdown. It was in Bell Garden’s following drive that San Marino scored the safety.
***Bell Gardens finishes the 2013 season with a 7-4 record under first year HC Geoff Ackerman.
***San Marino, now 8-2, advances to the second round to play San Dimas (48-6 winners over Gabrielino). This will be the third consecutive year the Titans have faced the Saints in the playoffs.
Leave a Reply