LAKESIDE – Statistically inferior in all ways but on the scoreboard, El Capitan took advantage of Brawley mistakes to pull out a 41-22 victory last night in the first round of the CIF San Diego Section Division III playoffs at Wendell R. Cutting Field.
“Stats are stats, but I'll take a 'W' all the time,” El Capitan coach Ron Burner said after the Vaqueros scored on six of their first eight possessions while amassing only 10 first downs. “Turnovers were the difference. I told our team, 'If we can get a few turnovers and turn them into points, we're going to win the game.' We were able to convert, and that was the key.”
El Capitan (8-3) scored three plays after a blocked punt by Allen Thomas and 23-yard return by James Gallivan. The Vaqueros scored two easy touchdowns after Brawley's backup long snapper sailed snaps over the punter's head for losses of 30 and 22 yards.
“Too many mistakes,” said Brawley coach John Bishop, whose team finished under .500 (5-6) for the first time since 1994. “Football is like Murphy's Law. If anything can go wrong, it will go wrong, especially when you don't have your best athletes available.”
The Vaqueros controlled the tempo behind quarterback Tanner Rust, who completed 9-of-18 passes for 144 yards and four TD passes, giving him 24 for the season. He connected with Philip Cook on the third play of the game for a 40-yard score.
Then after Thomas' blocked punt, Matt Burkett scored three plays later on an 8-yard run. Brawley scratched back with a 16-play, 80-yard drive and a 6-yard TD run by Abraham Oceguera, but the Vaqueros scored just before halftime on a Rust-to-Philip Cook pass on fourth and 8 with 38 seconds to take a 21-8 lead.
Brawley opened the second half with quarterback Donald Wharton hitting Robert Marquez on a 45-yard TD pass, but El Cap answered with three straight touchdowns – a pair of TD passes from Rust to Jon Molzen and a 3-yard run by Cook – to put the game away.
“They run a pretty dynamic defense, and their linebackers are really quick,” said center Mark Perez, who along with guards Alan Altamirano and Matt Hobby, enabled the Vaqueros to dominate the line of scrimmage. “We had to make some adjustments. Being El Capitan, we're mainly a passing team. But any time we get to run the ball, we like to take advantage of it.”
Because of injuries to their three best players, the Wildcats started a sophomore at quarterback and two sophomores at wing – Brawley's key backs in its split-back veer formation.
Nonetheless, Wharton was 8-of-16 passing for 178 yards and two touchdown passes to Marquez. Wharton also rushed for 48 yards.
Fellow 10th-grader Oceguera had 13 carries for 61 yards and Oscar Lizarraga added 43 yards on 14 attempts as Brawley netted 299 total yards, including the 52-yard losses on the two bad snaps.
Things won't get any easier on Friday in the quarterfinals against No. 4-seed St. Augustine (6-4) at Southwestern College. Two years ago, the Saints ruined El Cap's perfect season with a thrilling 51-43 victory.
“We're looking for revenge from two years ago,” Cook said. “That's what we're playing for now.”
