Mountain View's Shane Cooney, center, is leveled by Milpitas' Nick Van Damme in the Trojans' 20-14 victory.
Milpitas linebacker Steven Fanua had been the most impressive player all afternoon, knocking down running backs with violent tackles, chasing the quarterback in the backfield and generally wreaking havoc on the Mountain View offense.
But when Trojan Coach Kelly King needed an offensive spark late in the third quarter, he gave the ball to Fanua, who also plays fullback.
Fanua broke loose for a 25-yard run, setting up his own tying touchdown and motivating his team as Milpitas went on to beat host Mountain View 20-14 in a Santa Clara Valley Athletic League De Anza Division game.
"We knew we had to win this one if we want to make the playoffs," Fanua said. "I love this defense - we're like a family. If one person makes a play, you can count on a teammate to come through. Everyone understands their responsibilities."
Fanua's 1-yard touchdown run was followed by a two-point conversion when Dimitri Vigil caught a pass from Cameron Hernandez to tie the score 14-14 with 11:56 left.
Milpitas (4-4, 3-1) held the Spartans to 33 yards rushing and 144 yards of total offense, thanks to Fanua's two sacks and several bone-jarring hits that changed the course of the game.
One came two plays after he scored, when he hit Mountain View quarterback Jeff Jalaba as he released the ball, leading to Charles Satchell's second interception. Havelock Pomele (105 yards rushing and two touchdowns in 23 carries) scored one play later on a 12-yard run. "Steven's run fired the offense up," Pomele said. "It had been open all game, but we finally started running the ball up the middle. He let us know what we needed to do." Satchell had an excellent game, setting up the Trojans' first touchdown by returning an interception 35 yards to the Spartan 3-yard line in the second quarter. Mountain View (3-4-1, 1-2-1) led 14-6 at the half. Jalaba hit Trevor Campbell (six catches for 89 yards) on passes of 33 and 22 yards, to set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Jalaba in the second quarter. MILPITAS 20, MOUNTAIN VIEW 14 Milpitas 0 6 0 14 -20 Mountain View 0 14 0 0 -14 Mil H.Pomele 3 run (kick failed) MV Jalaba 1 run (Francisco kick) MV A.Cooney 47 int. return (Francisco kick) MV Fanua 1 run (Vigil pass from Hernandez) MV H.Pomele 12 run (kick failed) Records - Milpitas 4-4, 3-1; Mountain View 3-4-1, 1-2-1.
No comments:
Post a Comment