Matt Montez rushed for 176 yards and two scores.
By Tim Peterson
(Arcadia) – Rio Hondo Prep used four turnovers and a prolific running attack to rout El Rancho 41-14 on a rainy Friday night in the second round of the CIF Division 8 playoffs at Arcadia High School. With the victory the Kares advanced to the Semi-Finals.
Rio Hondo Prep, already leading 21-7, put the game away in the third quarter. The Kares put together a 10-play 51-yard drive with Elias Har capping it with a three-yard touchdown run.
On the next possession Rio Hondo Prep intercepted El Rancho quarterback Adrian Lopez and set up shop deep in Dons territory. It was Har again finding paydirt with a three-yard pass from Donald Scheffler. Just like that it was 35-7. Game. Set. Match.
The Kares tacked on another one early in the fourth quarter on a one-yard plunge by Troy Seto – his second score of the night.
El Rancho scored the final points of the night when Ray Madrid took a pass from Lopez and weaved his way 38 yards through the Rio Hondo Prep secondary with 5:38 left.
The Kares stopped El Rancho on fourth down on the first possession of the game and turned it into a score. Matt Montez broke through the defensive front and raced 54 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead.
On the next series a 38-yard pass from Scheffler to Seto set up a nine-yard touchdown jaunt by Montez for a 14-0 advantage.
Afte thwarting the El Rancho offense again the Kares scored for the third time in three possessions. Seto finished a 60-yard drive with a five-yard run with over nine minutes left in the second quarter.
Late in the second Lopez threw a 21-yard strike to Nathan Carlos on fourth down to get the Dons on the board. Although they were still down 21-7 the score gave El Rancho some hope heading into halftime.
The Kares then ended any hopes in the third quarter and cruised to the victory.
Rio Hondo Prep had four interceptions on the night. Montez finished with 176 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
El Rancho ended the season as Metro League champions and with an overall record of 9-3. Rio Hondo Prep, also 9-3, is headed to the Semis.
The Kares will play at Segerstrom next Friday night.
ER 0 7 0 7 14
RH 14 7 14 6 41
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@SoCal and @Maverick stop crying and just tip your cap to RHP. ER got outplayed out coached and everything in between, period! Also to say that because they lost to DCA week 10 drops them a whole division is comical. Don’t be bitter be BETTER.
Just as we all expected, Rio dominated. Which brings me to my main point: why in the world would CIF put a 3-time defending section champion in Division 8? Look at their recent track record:
2025: CIF-SS Division 5 Champion & CIF State Division 2-A Runner-Up
2024: CIF-SS Division 7 Champion & CIF State Division 3-A Runner-Up
2023: CIF-SS Division 9 Champion
Why because they lost a few games this season? Give me a break, CIF. There is no reason a program with that kind of championship pedigree should be placed in D8. This system is terrible. This is what happens when you let computers do the thinking instead of using common sense.
I saw that interview from the ER head coach by Fred. Coach is spot on, on teams sandbagging it to get in a lower division. Either CIF must tweak their system or it will get worse. Most coaches don’t sandbag because they have integrity, but there are your Northviews, Rio Hondo Prep and Colonys’ of the world that do. I glad coach had the balls to call him out, the truth comes out after a tough lost. RHP has no business being in D8 period and two blowouts to prove it.