Home at last
After being on the road for the first three weeks of the season, the San Marcos football team comes home to a brand new, state-of-the-art turf field and a renamed stadium.
Hueneme will be the Royals’ first opponent at Warkentin Stadium at 7 p.m. Friday night. The name was changed from Valley Stadium after a generous donation from San Marcos parents John and Mardi Warkentin made it possible for the “Field of Champions” field turf project to be completed. The Warkentin’s children, Kara, Mark and Paul were all standout athletes at the school.
The undersized Royals had a rough start to the season, getting run over by physical Cabrillo and Rio Mesa teams in their first two outings. The Royals were in the game until the final whistle against Beverly Hills, falling 20-14.
“We have seen large amount of improvement in the first three games,” San Marcos coach Dale Perizzolo said. “The first two games were real tough teams and we made some mistakes that we couldn’t recover from. Last week we had a lot of learning and practice at the things we needed to improve.”
The Royals will be facing a Hueneme team that has been outscored 138-34 in defeats against Thousand Oaks, Santa Clara and Nordhoff.
“We are all pumped to not only play at home but to play at our “new” home,” Perizzolo said. “It is exciting knowing that the community will get to see us in action.”
Hueneme (0-3) at San Marcos (0-3): The Royals showed some life on offense as quarterback Wesley Ghan-Gibson threw a touchdown pass to the speedy Andrew Thayer against Beverly Hills. “Thayer at receiver and Gibson at QB have been a great combo getting our offense going strong,” said Perizzolo. “(Marquis) Glover has been a standout on both sides of the ball.” The San Marcos defense will have to contain athletic Hueneme quarterback DeShaun Nixon to have a chance to win this game. “We have scouted Hueneme well and expect this to be a good game for us. We have prepped a lot as always and are ready for this game.” The pick: San Marcos.
Rio Mesa (1-1) at Santa Barbara (1-2): Playing with “discipline” is what Dons coach Jaime Melgoza has been stressing to his team this week. Santa Barbara was whistled for 18 penalties in its 36-14 loss at Lompoc last Friday. A positive that came out of the game was the passing of quarterback Shawn Ramos. He threw for 243 yards. Combined with the running of Cheroke Cunningham, the Dons now have a more diversified attack. Rio Mesa, considered a favorite to win the Pacific View League, was pummeled by Ventura 44-13 last week. The Spartans have a potent 1-2 rushing attack with running backs Tanner Wrout and Jordan Nunnery. This figures to a physical contest. The Dons can win if they cut down on their penalties. The pick: Santa Barbara
Dos Pueblos (0-3) at Lompoc (3-0): Things don’t get any easier for the Chargers as they face the defending CIF Northwest Division champs on the road. DP had trouble stopping Cabrillo’s running game and its offense struggled to move the ball in last week’s 28-7 loss. Lompoc’s bread and butter is running the football. The keys for the Chargers will be protecting the ball and giving their defense some rest. The pick: Lompoc
Bishop Diego (1-1) vs. Santa Paula (0-2): (at Ventura College): It’s the battle of the Cardinals. Santa Paula has put up 32 and 39 points in its first two games. But it’s allowed 104, including 64 to Oxnard-Pacifica last Friday. “We’re hoping not to be in a shootout with them,” said Bishop coach Tom Crawford, whose team put up 33 points in last week’s win over previously unbeaten Mission Prep (33-14). “(Santa Paula) is very athletic and have the potential to put up a lot of points in a short period time. Given that, and seeing how athletic Pacifica was, we need to be able to control things more, sustain some long drives to keep their offense off the field, and improve on our ability to finish drives with points.” Senior running back Steven Kohr keys the Santa Paula offense. He’s rushed for 226 yards with 3 TDs and caught 10 passes for 148 yards and a TD. Bishop has really opened up its offense. Brandon Gonzalez is the leading rusher with 207 yards and a TD, and quarterback Nolan Tisdale has thrown for 299 yards and 4 TDs. Special teams have been huge with speedy Sam Kwock. He has 222 yards on five kickoff returns and two touchdowns. The pick: Bishop Diego
Santa Ynez (1-1) at Carpinteria (2-0): This is one of oldest rivalries in the county, dating back to the 1920s. Santa Ynez is coming off a 27-7 drubbing against a very good Paso Robles team, while Carpinteria pulled away from Nipomo in the fourth quarter, 24-13. Sophomore Ian Craddock continues to improve each week for the Warriors. “Ian has been able to stay within our game plan and has, for the most part, controlled the ball — and has made some great plays,” coach Ben Hallock said “We have had several long drives (5 drives of 13-plus plays) which means he is getting the ball to the right people at the right times. He will continue to get better — that is definitely built into his character.”
On Santa Ynez, Hallock said the Pirates’ size advantage and speed is a concern. Quarterback Ryan Welker and receiver Zach Foss are playmakers, and Abe Santos and Alec Hanna are tough runners. “Any team coached by Kenny (Gruendyke) will always be well coached and will play hard and be fundamentally sound from start to finish, as evidenced by their Bishop win.” The pick: Carpinteria
