For the Scots, their non-league season began with losses against high division teams such as Sacred Heart Prep 21-6 and Terra Nova 21-10. However, as the Scots faced the Bearcats on Sept. 14, their string of victory is starting to take form, following their thrilling win against Mountain View on Sept. 7.
Carlmont started the game off strong with each down bringing the Scots closer to the end zone. On their third down, Jonaven Kuhn, a junior, carried the ball down 18 yards. On the next down Jonaven Kuhn’s brother, Jayden Kuhn, a senior, received the ball and carried it into a 36-yard touchdown.
After a successful point after touchdown, the Scots were in the lead 7-0 and kicked off to San Mateo.
Though the first ten minutes showed the strength in Carlmont’s offensive line, their defense also performed holding San Mateo in the first four downs. As Carlmont regained possession of the ball, several plays were made but the first quarter soon ended any attempts of a second touchdown.
Among the crowd of Carlmont supporters, Vice Principal Grant Steunenberg and Principal Ralph Crame watched as the Scots dominated the field.
“I think that our guys started off playing against some really tough teams and showed a lot of heart in the way that they played against those teams that were from divisions that were above them,” Steunenberg said.
The second quarter also started strong for Carlmont with a 66-yard rushing touchdown by Julian Morin, a senior, within the first ten minutes.
With the Scots moving through the Bearcats’ defensive line to score touchdown after touchdown, players from San Mateo tried to adjust their tactics however Carlmont’s defense continued to hold the Bearcats down ending the second quarter 14-0.
“We were just trying to move the ball and on defense, we were trying to stop them [Carlmont] but I honestly don’t know what happened,” defensive tackle Samiuela Kolokihakaufisi, a senior at San Mateo, said.
According to Kolokihakaufisi, part of the issue San Mateo faced was the lack of familiarity in their new offensive lineup.
“I hope that we can improve on our offense, we’re running this new offense that our coach came up with and we’re not used to it. I think we just gotta do better in practice,” Kolokihakaufisi said.
After forcing San Mateo to punt on the opening possession of the second half, Carlmont put together its best drive of the night, covering 75 yards on 12 plays. With just two yards left, sophomore quarterback Siupeli Netane scored Carlmont’s third touchdown of the night.
Though ahead 21-0, the night was still young and the Scots were determined to make as many touchdowns as possible.
With just 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Netane connected with Jonaven Kuhn on a 25-yard touchdown.
However, despite the efforts of Carlmont’s defense the game did not end in a shutout as San Mateo junior quarterbacks Luke Bergstrom and Michael Vendel connected a 25-yard touchdown pass with just four minutes remaining in the game.
As the game ended 28-7, the Scots joined together to celebrate their victory.
Going into this game I think we were all focusing on the main goal at hand. “We knew that this was a team that we could beat if we come in as a brotherhood and play our hearts out and the scoreboards show that we did.
— Jake Parker, a senior
