Cougars notch first win in nearly a year
By Brian Sumpter
Football week in review
Week 2
Friday’s results
Lower Lake 44, Kennedy 14
Upper Lake 36, Los Molinos 26
Orland 44, Kelseyville 21
Piedmont 42, Middletown 21
Pierce 51, Clear Lake 7
Statistics
Rushing – Upper Lake’s Delaney Allison led the way with 119 yards on 14 carries and two touchdowns against Los Molinos. Lower Lake’s Zakai Vilmenay added 81 yards on 10 carries and a TD against Kennedy, part of a solid Trojans running attack that also featured 69 yards and two TDs from Zach Jones. Middletown’s Trenton Griffith finished with 58 yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns against Piedmont. Kelseyville’s Kyle Watkins had 44 yards on 14 carries and a TD against Orland.
Passing – Kelseyville’s Brock Barrick went 15-for-22 for 260 yards, two TDs and an interception against Orland. Lower Lake’s Ashton Hartmann completed 11 of 17 passes for 102 yards and three TDs against Kennedy. Middletown’s Blake Costlow went 10-for-21 for 134 yards versus Piedmont. Clear Lake’s AJ Bruch was 10 for 25 for 125 yards and two interceptions in his varsity debut against Pierce. Upper Lake’s Jerod Rosales was 5-for-10 for 63 yards against Los Molinos.
Receiving – Kelseyville’s Reme Strong had seven catches for 105 yards and a touchdown while teammate Jayden Teabo caught four passes for 84 yards. Middletown’s Jon Hawkins had five catches for 97 yards. Clear Lake’s Zane McAuley caught four passes for 42 yards. Lower Lake’s Luke Campbell had three catches, two of them for touchdowns, for 34 yards overall.
Special teams
Tough night – Kelseyville’s kickoff coverage unit had a hard time bottling up Orland. The Trojans returned one kickoff for a score while two other long returns set up touchdowns.
Better than nothing – Pierce kicked a 37-yard field goal on its second possession of the night to open an early 10-0 lead against Clear Lake.
Clicking – Lower Lake scored two-point conversions after four of its six touchdowns against Kennedy.
Defense
Nearly a dozen – Upper Lake’s Jonathon Barnes made 11 unassisted tackles against Los Molino while Middletown’s Jon Hawkins had two solo tackles and nine assists against Piedmont.
An even dozen – Middletown’s Jacob Pullman registered seven solo tackles and five assists against Piedmont.
Pair of picks – Upper Lake’s junior varsity squad picked off two Los Molinos passes that helped the Cougars improve to 2-0 with a 22-8 win.
Strong effort – Lower Lake head coach Jay Jakubowski singled out the strong play of his defensive line – Noel Pereira, Edgar Ontiveros, Xavier Arellano and Vincent Wilson – against Kennedy as well as the play of Jason Gandeza at inside linebacker.
Miscellaneous
Good battle – The final score of the Orland-Kelseyville game is a bit misleading as the Knights came within a missed extra point of tying the Trojans at 22-all late in the third quarter. From that point, Orland outscored Kelseyville 22-0. Running back Kyle Watkins missed a fair portion of that game after taking a couple of hard shots and leaving for the sidelines with neck pain.
Nearly a calendar year – Upper Lake went nearly a calendar year between wins, its last victory prior to beating Los Molinos on Friday night coming against Lower Lake, 30-20, in a North Central League I game on Sept. 22, 2023 in Upper Lake.
Hard shot – Lower Lake head coach Jay Jakubowski was knocked unconscious when he was struck by an official racing down the sidelines during Friday’s action in Lower Lake. Jakubowski said the official’s shoulder struck him right behind the ear. Paramedics tended to him on the sideline. Jakubowski said he sustained a concussion.
Righty, lefty – Clear Lake quarterback/punter AJ Bruch throws right-handed and punts with left leg.
League play opens – Clear Lake visits Upper Lake, Lower Lake travels to Cloverdale, Kelseyville hosts Fort Bragg in Lakeport, and Willits travels to St. Helena as North Central League I play opens on Friday the 13th. Middletown has the bye.
Break up the Greyhounds – The long-suffering Healdsburg Greyhounds, once a sectional power turned pauper in recent seasons, are off to a 2-0 start. Healdsburg beat Cloverdale 35-21 in its season opener and then took it to St. Helena, 54-25, last week. Both games took place in Healdsburg. The Greyhounds hit the road this coming Saturday to take on Berean Christian (2-0). Healdsburg went 0-9-1 last season and 0-10 in 2022.
Devastating injury – Middletown junior quarterback Blake Costlow broke his foot near the end of the third quarter last weekend in the team’s loss to Piedmont. He played the entire fourth quarter with the injury, which wasn’t diagnosed until Saturday. Middletown head coach Bill Foltmer, in his 40th and final season with the Mustangs, said it’s the most devastating injury he’s suffered during his long career, especially given Middletown’s low numbers and complete lack of depth this season. Costlow helped lead the team to a NCL I co-championship last season as a sophomore and was off to a solid start again this year. The Mustangs have a bye this week before opening league their league schedule at home Friday, Sept. 20 against Kelseyville.
Not liking the trend – Season-ending injuries have already claimed Kelseyville running back Max Hommer (broken collarbone) in Week 1 and now Middletown quarterback Blake Costlow (broken foot) in Week 2.
They finally get to play – Lower Lake’s junior varsity team had both of its first two games canceled because neither Esparto nor Kennedy could field JV teams. The Trojans travel to Cloverdale on Friday night for their league and season opener.
Cardinals now Corsairs – Former Clear Lake High School stars Hank Ollenberger and Cody Hayes made their college debut Saturday in College of the Redwoods’ 33-7 win at Merced. Ollenberger, a running back, carried the ball four times for 29 yards and had a 23-yard reception. Hayes, a tight end, caught one pass for nine yards.
Kudos – To Upper Lake boys soccer coach Thomas Santana for phoning in his results from the Tyler Duncan Memorial tournament. At least one county coach came through. It’s appreciated.
