MidValleySports.Com

By Alex A. Gonzalez

Baldwin Park – After dropping the previous two Valle Vista League games, the San Dimas Saints needed a win Thursday night at Ted K Gorrell Memorial Stadium against the Baldwin Park Braves to stay in playoff contention. They did so easily after rushing for 295 yards and scoring five touchdowns as a team in their 38-28 victory.

Even though quarterback Brandon Meredith completed no passes, he did not need to as Keenan Hoyt carried the ball 14 times for 122 yards and scored three touchdowns, and Daniel Baeza added 215 yards on 15 carries and scored twice in San Dimas’ victory.

​The duo and Jacob Gallegos were able to keep an arms distance between them and the Braves after they jumped to a 14-0 lead at the 7:54 mark of the second quarter. Hoyt got the scoring started on their opening drive when he took the handoff on 4th down and ran straight through the Braves’ defense for the 33-yard score. He then reached the end zone for the second time when he took the reverse handoff and scored from 9 yards out.

Baldwin Park then responded on the next series by attacking the San Dimas secondary with Valentino May behind center. The drive was set up by the Braves’ special teams when they returned the kickoff to the Braves’ 44-yard line. After May completed his eighth pass for 16 yards to Dah Riyon Vaughn and Jayden Maxie’s 34 rushing yards on three carries, May then took the snap and connected with Maxie, who was running the wheel route, for the score midway through the second quarter.

​The Saints’ ground game then chewed up the remaining 4:38 of the quarter before trotting out Brady Arriaga, who booted a 34-yard field goal, giving his team a 17-7 lead before intermission.

The Braves made it a three-point game after halftime. May found Vaughn running the slant, who then took it to the house for a 64-yard score. That was the closest the team would get, as the defense then allowed the Saints to score on back-to-back drives.

Baeza rushed for 70 yards only 13 seconds after the Braves made it 17-14. Then, after the defense forced a turnover on downs, the Saints went back to Baeza. On San Dimas’ third play, he reached the end zone from 40 yards out..

The Braves’ offense responded at the 3:31 mark of the third quarter. May connected with Jacory Coleman, who ran across the field for the score. Unfortunately, even as the offense scored, their defense could not stop the Saints from doing the same.

At the start of the fourth quarter, Hoyt and Co. needed six rushes to extend their lead by three scores. Hoyt took a second reverse handoff and scored his third rushing touchdown, making it 38-21.

​Baldwin Park added a late touchdown after Choyce Hampton bulldozed his way into the endzone from a yard out, making the score 38-28 with 5:33 remaining in regulation. But the Saints’ running game chewed up more than 3 minutes of game clock, giving the ball back to the Braves with 1:10 left. But their drive ended as well as the ball game when May threw an interception in the end zone as time expired.

With the win, the Saints move to 5-4 overall. They will look to go 3-2 in Valle Vista league play next Thursday when they host Alta Loma. The Braves, 4-5, and 0-4 in the Valle Vista, will look for their first league win next Thursday when they host Diamond Ranch.

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