Lower Lake wins 20-8 after Cloverdale stops game late in third quarter
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CLOVERDALE >> Not only was time on Lower Lake’s side Friday night in their North Central League I varsity football opener at Cloverdale, but so were roster numbers.
Lower Lake suited up more than 30 players, Cloverdale just 15 and while quantity doesn’t always make the difference, it did for the Trojans, who won 20-8 in a game forfeited with 1:24 remaining in the third quarter because the Eagles, who were celebrating their homecoming, had only 11 healthy players left.
Though the Trojans (1-0 league, 3-0 overall) held just a 12-point lead when the game was called, head coach Jay Jakubowski’s squad was in complete control.
“We can run the ball, we can pass, we’re not a one-dimensional team,” Jakubowski said. “On defense we’re bigger up front and in the middle this year. We didn’t even have one of our top players tonight (junior linebacker Jason Gandeza missed the game with an injury), but we’re two deep at every position.”
Cloverdale opened the game with only a handful of reserves before injuries cut that number to the bare minimum – 11 – by the end of the third quarter, at which point the Eagles indicated they couldn’t continue.
Lower Lake had just taken a 20-8 lead on a 48-yard pass from quarterback Ashton Hartmann to wide receiver Christian Rodriguez, a deep throw down the middle that caught Rodriguez in stride, and the Trojans were about to kick the ball back to the Eagles when play was stopped and Lower Lake informed the game was over.
“I went over there (to the Cloverdale sideline) to talk to them (Eagles players),” said Jakubowski, who said he certainly sympathized with the Eagles’ plight given his own experience at Lower Lake where some of his past teams have sustained a fair number of injuries.
Jakubowski also agreed with Cloverdale head coach Jason Mora’s to stop the game when he did.
“He wants to have a team left for the rest of the season,” Jakubowski said. “He was just doing what he felt was the best for his team.”
By Jakubowski’s count, the Eagles lost four players as the game went on, including one to a broken collarbone.
“I can empathize,” Jakubowski said. “I’ve been there.”
Cloverdale’s decision to forfeit likely prevented a much more lopsided outcome as the Trojans were hitting on all cylinder in the second half after playing a mistake-filled first half that ended in an 8-8 tie.
The Eagles received the second-half kickoff, picked up one first down thanks to the hard running of sophomore running back Carson Brown (15 carries for 59 yards), but ended up in a punting situation from their own 38-yard line. When the Cloverdale punter had trouble with the snap and couldn’t get a kick off, Lower Lake ended up taking over on downs at the Cloverdale 28.
Lower Lake running back Zakai Vilmenay carried twice for 14 yards and then caught a 6-yard pass from Hartmann before Zach Jones ran for another six yards down to the 2-yard line. Cloverdale jumped offside twice before Hartmann scored standing up from a yard out. The Trojans couldn’t convert on the two-point conversion run but did pull ahead at 14-8.
Lower Lake’s defense held Cloverdale without a yard on its next possession before the Eagles punted the ball back to the Trojans, who were pinned deep in their own territory at the 10. Hartmann opened what would be a seven-play, 90-yard scoring drive with back-to-back completions to Luke Campbell (for seven yards) and Robert Saldana (for eight yards), then consecutive runs by Jones for nine yards, Vilmenay for three yards and Saldana for five yards.
A 10-yard pass from Hartmann to Jordan Rohrbacker moved the ball just into Cloverdale territory where Hartmann’s bomb to Rodriguez capped the drive and made it 20-8.
Hartmann went 5-for-5 for 79 yards on Lower Lake’s two possessions in the third quarter and finished the game 9-for-10 for 128 yards.
Outside of Brown’s hard-earned rushing yardage, the Eagles struggled to move the ball on the ground or through the air. While the Eagles were able to grab an 8-0 lead midway through the first quarter on an 11-yard pass from quarterback Kyle Bernardi to wide receiver Coby Haug, Cloverdale’s passing game was no real threat. The Eagles completed only four of 10 passes for 20 yards, more than half of those coming on the touchdown pass.
Lower Lake broke onto the scoreboard with a 10-play, 81-yard drive to open the second quarter after the Eagles turned the ball over on downs. Hartmann went 2-for-2 for 29 yards and Lower Lake’s running game, led by Vilmenay and Jones, did the rest. Vilmenay finished it off with a 1-yard run over the left side, walking into the end zone. Hartmann’s conversion pass tied the game at 8-8 with 4:52 left in the half.
Cloverdale answered with a long drive of its own, picking up three first downs and taking advantage of two critical Lower Lake penalties, but the Eagles still couldn’t take advantage as a 21-yard field goal attempt with 14 seconds left was blocked.
As the injuries mounted for the Eagles in the first half and into the third quarter, so did their effectiveness. With the physical play of the Trojans a definite factor, Cloverdale chose the wise course and ended the game.
Jakubowski said he was pleased that the Trojans cleaned up things in the second half, playing mistake-free ball.
“We’re a good team, but sometimes we get a little ahead of ourselves,” he said. “Once we eliminated all those mistakes, we were pretty efficient.”
Added Jakubowski, “We knew they (Eagles) were tired, and we knew we could grind them down.”
Off to its best start since the 2017 season when Lower Lake won its first four games with quarterback Hokulani Wickard – now a Lower Lake coach – leading the way at quarterback, the Trojans can equal that mark next Friday with a win in Willits against the Wolverines (1-0, 2-1).
“Willits is physical like us, so it will be a good test for us,” Jakubowski said. “We’ll have a better idea where we stand after playing them.”
In addition to Hartmann’s 128 passing yards, the Trojans added another 101 on the ground led by Vilmenay’s 54 yards on nine carries and Jones’ 43 yards on nine carries. Hartmann spread the ball around to five different receivers. Rodriguez ended up with two catches for 66 yards.
Lower Lake’s junior varsity team played its first game of the season and fell 21-8 to Cloverdale.
Game notes: Jakubowski continues to recover from his own injury after he was accidentally struck by an official near the sideline during the Trojans’ 44-14 win over Kennedy the previous week at Lower Lake. Jakubowski was knocked unconscious and sustained a concussion, one that he said he is still feeling the effects of. Though he got knocked out during the win over Kennedy, he remained on the sidelines and even helped take in the equipment after the game. “I wasn’t going to leave,” Jakubowski said.
