ESPN

1. After a shaky first-round playoff game against Redondo, St. Bonaventure left no doubt in the quarterfinals against Canyon. The Seraphs, the third-seeded team in the Southern Section Northern Division playoffs, eliminated Canyon from the playoffs for the second year in a row and will face Oaks Christian, the reigning Northern Division champion, in the semifinals. The last time St. Bonaventure and Oaks Christian met was in the second week of Marmonte League play. Oaks Christian won 36-24, but the game was not without controversy. The lights went out at the Oaks Christian football stadium during a punt in the second half. St. Bonaventure was rallying and was about to take over possession. The lights went out at the stadium while the punt was in the air and the ball was downed on the St. Bonaventure one-yard line. Not only did St. Bonaventure have terrible field position to start its next drive, the game was delayed for nearly 30 minutes to restore the lights. St. Bonaventure’s Montre Lee and Patrick Kenney, who each scored key touchdowns against Canyon, said a rematch with Oaks Christian has been a motivating factor for the team. But St. Bonaventure might not be at 100 percent. Running back Shaun Wick has been limited because of a calf injury in the two playoff games. He was the team’s leading rusher after the first 10 games but has only carried the ball four times in the last two games. He did not have a carry against Redondo and gained 57 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown, in four carries against Canyon. While Wick has been sidelined, freshman Marcus Chambers has emerged as an effective back in the playoffs. He rushed for 47 yards and scored a touchdown against Redondo. He had 41 yards in eight carries against Canyon. He’s also a player that Oaks Christian hasn’t seen, so St. Bonaventure might have a bit of a surprise factor in the rematch.

2. On the other side of the Northern Division playoff bracket is Westlake, the newly dubbed No. 1 team in the ESPN Los Angeles Top 25 rankings, against a depleted Thousand Oaks team. It’s an all-Marmonte League final four. Westlake is undefeated and has outscored its two playoff opponents, Eastside and Hart, 101-26. Thousand Oaks coach Mike Leibin said only 38 players dressed for last week’s playoff game against Moorpark. The Lancers have won three games in a row, but the two playoff games have been challenging. Thousand Oaks traveled to Quartz Hill in the first round and beat the Rebels, 20-7. Against Moorpark, the Lancers needed two fourth-quarter touchdowns to beat the Musketeers, 21-14. If Thousand Oaks is to have any chance of pulling an upset over Westlake, the team will need big games out of Blake Howell and Nathan DeBeikes. Howell caught four passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns against Moorpark. DeBeikes rushed for 106 yards, taking all 26 carries for Thousand Oaks, and scored a touuchdown. Westlake, on the other hand, has a multitude of offensive weapons. The Warriors scored 28 points in the second quarter against Hart en route to a 42-14 win. Running back Dashon Hunt scored three touchdowns against Hart. Receiver Connor Cook caught two touchdown passes. Jarius Bishop scored a touchdown and rushed for 30 yards.

(Read full post)

VENTURA -- St. Bonaventure scored two lightning-quick touchdowns against Canyon in the quarterfinals of their CIF-Southern Section Northern Division playoff game. One was on a punt return by speedy Montre Lee. The other was on an interception return by lumbering defensive tackle Patrick Kenney.

Both third-quarter scores came in a 10-second span and St. Bonaventure eliminated Canyon, 38-17, from the playoffs for the second year in a row.

Lee scored on a 45-yard punt return and Kenney returned an interception 26 yards 10 second later at Ventura High School on Friday night.

After building a 21-3 lead at halftime, St. Bonaventure’s two quick strikes from a pair of unlikely sources put the game out of reach for visiting Canyon (9-3).

Lee said he told his coaches before the game he was going to return a kick for a touchdown. He has been hurt the last few weeks and not playing at 100 percent health.

“This whole game I was hungry,” Lee said. “I told my coaches I was going to take back a return, I was going to take back a punt or a kick return and I was ready for that one.”

Kenney scored his first career touchdown on the interception return. It was only his third career high school interception.

What little hope Canyon had of rallying in the second half was squashed by the touchdowns by Lee and Kenney.

“We already had a commanding lead,” St. Bonaventure coach Todd Threrrien said. “That kind of put it out of reach.”

(Read full post)