Varsity Cardinals defeat Lower Lake 28-6 to complete undefeated season
Lake County Sports on Facebook
CLOVERDALE >> Twelves games and 12 wins for the varsity Westshore Cardinals, who wrapped up the Mendo-Lake Empire Junior Football League championship Saturday with a 28-6 win over the Lower Lake Trojans at Cloverdale High School.
Westshore fell behind 6-0 before reeling off 28 unanswered points against the Trojans (10-2), whose only two losses came to the Cardinals this season.
“Lower Lake definitely came to play, but our kids were not willing to lose,” Westshore head coach Sid Percaccio said. “They made big stops when they needed to and big plays when they had to.”
After Lower Lake moved out to a 6-0 lead on a 39-yard touchdown run, the Cardinals were facing a fourth-and-long situation when quarterback Pop Horne threw a pass to Dillon Egan, who made an amazing one-handed catch for a 38-yard touchdown. Westshore missed the conversion kick, leaving the two teams tied at 6.
Westshore forced a Lower Lake punt early in the second quarter and took over at the Lower Lake 49-yard line. Once again facing a fourth-down situation, Horne and Nathan Heath connected on a 13-yard pass for the first down. The Cardinals converted again on fourth down moments later, a Horne pass to Kayvon Evans putting the ball at the 6-yard line, and setting up a 1-yard Horne touchdown. Isiah McCloud’s conversion kick put Westshore ahead to stay at 14-6, the halftime score.
The Cardinals received the second-half kickoff and worked their way down the field before scoring on Horne’s 31-yard pass to Javon Evans. McCloud’s conversion kick pushed Westshore’s lead to 22-6.
Westshore added an insurance touchdown in the fourth quarter. Back-to-back runs by Landyn Collins set up a a John Pasalo 4-yard score, making it 28-6.
Lower Lake drove inside Westshore’s 15-yard line but lost possession on downs. The Trojans got the ball back on an interception, their second of the game, and made it as far as the Westshore 9 where Pasalo forced a fumble that was recovered by teammate Andre McCloud.
Westshore ran out the remaining clock to seal its championship win.
“This group of kids has worked so hard over the years and especially throughout the season,” Percaccio said. “They definitely earned this one and all of us coaches could not be more proud of these kids and the family that they created.”
