On Sept. 2, Carlmont varsity lost 50-28 at home to the Woodside Wildcats after a slow start that began with multiple errors, giving Woodside an early lead in the first quarter.
However, Carlmont continued to build off from their strong second half with Aragon last week. The Scots were able to return from Woodside’s 20-0 lead in the first quarter with three touchdowns.
Woodside ended the game with a strong win, with their captain Marcelous Chester-Riley scoring five touchdowns.
On the first kickoff, Woodside senior Joseph Mejia scored a touchdown that was unforeseen by the crowd as a result of Carlmont neglecting their assignments.
“There were some miscues early on, but after that, we got our legs underneath us. Honestly, I thought we were neck and neck with them,” said Carlmont varsity coach Jake Messina.
Despite their loss, Carlmont made many touchdown attempts, three of which that were disallowed.
“The game would’ve been completely different because if we had those three touchdowns, we would have been either winning or tied midway through the fourth,” said junior Demarii Blanks.
The Scots preferred to make right-hand runs with the ball instead of throwing it to a player. Many of the runs, especially those of junior Demarri Blanks, were notable and sparked opportunities.
“Calmont got us on the outside sweep and toss. They were able to run a lot on us. [Blanks] was really good by the way, he broke a lot of tackles. We just need to keep them contained, we did pretty well with the inside runs, but did pretty bad on the outside runs,” said Woodside assistant coach Chris Riccardi.
In the third quarter, Blanks made a right field run with the ball that brought the two teams to a tie, 20-20, but not for long.
After the Wildcats scored 14 points, Riley intercepted a pass at the Scots’ goal line and on the first down, his teammate junior Darnell Ellis scored a touchdown in the beginning of the fourth quarter.
Three minutes later, Woodside senior Alex Roque scored a 42-yard field goal, giving the Wildcats a strong lead, 43-26.
In the last Carlmont touchdown of the night, Sagon saw a gap in the Wildcats’ defensive line and made a right-hand run, bringing the score up to 43-26.
“For a team of that athletic ability and for us to be there with them, it bodes well for us down the road. I guarantee if we did not do the stuff we did in the summer, then we would not be in this game at all, not even close. We are building and we will see those guys next year,” said Messina
Despite their young age and smaller size, Carlmont continues to work hard throughout the whole game, regardless of the score and hopes to win games this season.
“These kids give great effort and we have athletic ability, we are able to do something. We are just so incredibly young, which is difficult to overcome. Some of the penalties were outrageous, but it is what it is,” said Messina.
Carlmont’s next game is at home against Yerba Buena High School on Sept. 9.