Two small-school greats took center stage in the first game of Saturday’s CIF state championship bowl game in Mission Viejo and showed how to play big-time football.
In a battle of undefeated powerhouses, Rio Hondo Prep played tough but was outclassed by Sonora in a 35-10 loss in the Division 2-A title game at Saddleback College.
Rio Hondo Prep has just 82 boys, yet the Kares (15-1) have made a habit of beating schools with much larger enrollments — as they did two weeks earlier in a 29-7 victory over Redondo Union for its 17th South Section title. They were averaging 39 points per game entering Saturday’s showdown, but for the first time all season they faced an opponent capable of stuffing their run defenses and forcing them to throw — not their bread and butter.
“You watch film on everybody and come up with a strategy … but sometimes things don’t go according to plan,” said quarterback Yanick Diaz, who threw a 46-yard touchdown pass to a sidelined Elias Hara with 53 seconds left in the game but was sacked once and had two passes intercepted. “I’m so proud of my guys. Even though we lost, we gave it 100% and left it on the field.”
Easton Jara kicked a 27-yard field goal to pull Rio Hondo within 7-3 late in the first quarter, and in the second quarter, Kares drove deep into Sonora territory but came up empty after a Harem end zone drop and a fourth-down stop by the Wildcats at their own 14.
Noah Penunuri, Rio Hondo’s leading rusher and starting safety, entered the game with more than 1,200 yards and 22 touchdowns, but was injured and was only able to contribute 12 yards on six carries.
Rio Hondo Prep receiver Elias Har is pushed by Sonora defensive back Isaac Hudson during the first half of Saturday’s Division 2-A state championship football game at Saddleback College.
(Steve Galluzzo/For The Times)
“I wish we were a little bit healthier for this game, but give them credit — they did a great job,” Kares coach Mark Carson said. “Noah had two bad ankles. He tried to go for a couple of runs, but he just couldn’t do it. We thought we could get them over the top, and we got them a few times, but not enough.”
Sonora put the game out of reach in the third quarter, marching 47 yards on seven plays on its first possession and scoring on Tommy Sutton’s one-yard run to open an 18-point lead. A stop by Steven Morfoot led to another one-yard touchdown run by Sutton to make it 28-3 with 1:34 left in the quarter.
The Wildcats (15-0), who won the state 4-A bowl last year, extended their winning streak to 22 games — the longest active streak in California.
Christian Lee carried eight times for 54 yards and caught three passes for 27 yards, Tyler Dang had three catches for 65 yards and Har added two catches for 83 yards to lead Rio Hondo.
“You kind of mourn after this, but I’m sure when the guys have time to reflect, they’ll realize it was a great season,” Carson said.
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