Anthony Carter breaks free from a Duarte defender during Bishop Diego’s 41-7 quarterfinal win. (Photos by Janice Graham)
DUARTE ? Bishop Diego’s football team has found its way back home for a postseason game.
The third-seeded Cardinals won their second straight road game in the CIF Northwest Division playoffs Friday night, blasting Duarte, 41-7.
The win means the Cardinals (10-2) will finally play a home playoff game next weekend. They’ll host Tri-Valley League rival Nordhoff in the semifinals at SBCC.
It will be the first home playoff game in two years for the Cardinals, who are in the semifinals for the third straight season. They didn’t have a home playoff game last season because of a CIF sanction. Their last home postseason game was a first-round win over Brentwood in the 2011 East Valley Division playoffs
Running back Aidan Williams ran for two touchdowns.
In the meantime, Bishop has made itself at home on the road during the postseason. Last week, the Cardinals won at North Torrance, 34-0.
At Duarte, they dominated from the start. They rolled down the field on their first possession and scored on a 1-yard run by running back Abel Gonzalez.
Bishop quickly went up 14-0 when Gonzalez capped its second possession with a 6-yard touchdown run.
Then the defense made a statement after a fumble. It stopped Duarte on four possessions inside the 5-yard line.
The momentum of the defensive stand ?carried over to the offense, as the Cardinals scored again on a 51-yard run by Aidan Williams. The PAT kick was missed, leaving the Cardinals ahead 20-0 at halftime.
Bishop didn’t let ?up in the second half. Gonzalez burst through the line for a 44-yard gain and Williams finished the drive with a 2-yard TD run to make it 27-0.
Anthony Carter played another outstanding game on defense, picking off two passes ? he now has four in two playoff games.
After his first interception, he played quarterback and hit Danny Molina for a 17-yard pass down to the Duarte 2. He finished the short drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Thomas Lash for a 34-0 lead.
Carter recorded his second interception and the Cardinals cashed it in with another touchdown, a 5-yard run by Alexis Herrera.
Duarte (7-5) scored late in the game on a 99-yard fumble return avoid the shutout.
