Paloma puts it all together in second half for 21-7 victory
Brent Crabtree makes an interception for Paloma Valley in the second quarter. (Photo by Action Captures Media Group) By Paige Mendez, Corres...
By Paige Mendez, Correspondent
The Paloma Valley football team won its home opener against Moreno Valley Friday night, 21-7.
A messy but scoreless first half led to just one red zone play for either team in the first 24 minutes of game time. But three plays into the third quarter, strong safety Noah Lavine pulled down an interception and made it a pick-six, covering 75 yards to get the Wildcats on the board, 7-0.
Lavine said the pick wasn’t necessarily unexpected for him.
“I just saw the ball coming and I knew I had it in hand,” he said. “At halftime my coach told me if I stayed true to my game I would have a pick-six, and I came out and I got it.”
That score was a long time coming for Lavine and the rest of the Paloma defense, which forced five four-and-outs in the first half, without the new offense being able to capitalize on it.
Lineman Elijah Noriega said the offensive struggle in comparison to his defensive work was frustrating at times.
“It was like when you get a box for Christmas and think it’s going to be the cool game you wanted and when you open it up … it’s clothes,” he said. “So you’ve got to just go to the next gift.”
One particularly frustrating moment for the Wildcats in the first half was a fumble at the 2-yard line—with just under two minutes left in the half—that was recovered by Moreno Valley.
It was one of a handful of fumbles on the night, but head coach Juan Merida said that may just be part of the growing pains -- pains which are perhaps to be expected from a team that is only returning five varsity starters.
But the Wildcat defense capitalized on the little time they had before hitting the locker room with an interception from senior safety Brent Crabtree at their own 40-yard line. Arthur Clemons ran for over 45 yards on the next play but fell short of the goal line, leaving the scoreboard empty before the third quarter.
The kickstarting Lavine pick was followed by a forced Viking punt, then another Wildcat touchdown from running back Javon Major.
The drive was helped by a 26-yard pass from quarterback Isaac Navarro to London Jones-Marshall, which put them at the 2-yard line—the positioning Major needed to rush up the middle for that second Paloma touchdown.
The Vikings made it on the board in their next drive, but were answered just five plays later when Major carried in a 10-yarder to put his team up by two possessions.
If that didn’t ensure the Wildcat win, a pick in the following drive from junior strong safety James Olweny did the trick, as the Vikings ran out of time to change the score.
Merida said the defensive performance was a comfort to him and his coaching staff throughout the game and is something new he’s certainly grateful for.
“It gives you a lot of confidence to have the defense hold up so well. In the past we had to score on every drive to have a chance to win,” he said. “Now to be playing such good defense -- especially tonight -- it’s really comforting to know we can rely on that.”
Noriega said it was simple for him and his defense -- they were playing for each other.
“Really, it’s all just about playing for my brothers. I just played for the guy next to me,” he said. “I’m just glad they were able to come back. We held it down and my brothers brought it back for us in the second half.”
Lavine added that the coaching staff give them the confidence to give it their all.
“We trust our coaches, we trust our game plan,” he said. “We just lock in whether we’re up 100-0 or down 100-0. We’ve got to give 100 per cent no matter what.”
Overall, Merida said there’s a lot to work on but the part that is hardest to coach is already there for his young team.
“The energy and effort is there; it’s just little details and technique we need to clean up,” he said. “The inconsistency comes with the inexperience, but we’ll get it cleaned up.”
Paloma’s got a week to clean ot up before their next game, a home match-up with Kaiser on Friday at 7 p.m.
London Jones-Narshall (2) make the diving tackle for Paloma Valley. (Photo by Action Captures Media Group)
Paloma Valley's Arthur Clemons picks up big yardage Friday night. (Photo by Action Captures Media Group)
