Poway HS – Despite some goal line defensive heroics, an Offensive Line that continues to impress, and strong special teams play, the Torrey Pines High School Freshman Falcons wilted a bit in the 96° heat at Poway High School, losing to the Titan “A” Team, 16-0.

              It started well.  Falcon Jack Condon’s Opening Kick-Off was downed at the Poway 27-yard line. Torrey Pines defensive lineman Grant McGahey promptly stuffed the first two Titan ball carriers.  But, Poway moved the ball down the field in big chunks through the air.  After a Titan first down, Falcon D-End Ryan Bath managed to break up the Poway drive and single-handedly destroy an attempted sweep while being blatantly held by a Poway lineman.   After a McGahey stop on 3rd Down, Poway decided to go for it on 4th with four yards to go.  Blitzing linebacker Chase Pickwell used his strong pursuit skills to sack the Titan QB and end the seven play drive.

              Unfortunately, it was three plays and a punt by the Falcon Offense—but, what a punt! The first of four great punts by kicker Collin Brown.   This punt was downed on the 7 yard line, while three others throughout the game pinned the Titans at their 15, 11 and 5 yard lines.  Eat your heart out Mike Scifres.

              Halfway through the first quarter, with the temperature on the artificial turf reaching over 100°, the Falcon Defense found itself back on the field as Poway put together a slogging 11-play drive.  Linebackers Pickwell and Aaron Small, aided and abetted by McGahey (who dominated the Titan line for 10 tackles on the day) limited the drive, but Poway marched downfield with the help of some completions and a Torrey Pines penalty.  The Titans gained nine yards on one carry to bring the ball over mid-field.  With a tired Falcon defense looking to stop Poway on 2nd and 13 on the 42 yard line, linebacker Condon came up with a great solo tackle on the outside to stop the Titans for a two-yard gain.  Lineman Billy Maggs put a nail in the coffin of the Poway drive with a massive sack on third down, and the exhausted Falcon “D” got off the field. 

              But, despite three beautiful runs by fullback Jaxon McAllister (15 carries on the day for over 50 yards) on the next Falcon offensive possession, the drive petered out after six plays and Torrey Pines punted.

              The tired Defense was a just a step too slow on the next play, and a Titan ball carrier broke one tackle, turned the corner, and went 67-yards for the game’s first score.  Poway, 7-0.

              Relying heavily on the big O-Line of Jacob Alsadek, Derek Lipincyzk, Andrew Maneval, Johnny Yacovelle (rotating with Tyler “T-Bone” Lavery) and Condon, and handing the ball off repeatedly to McAllister, the Falcons managed a first down and a six-play drive on their next possession.  But, a penalty and a sack lead to a punt, and the Defense was back on the field with a few minutes left in the half.  Brian Cuff and Pickwell combined on one tackle, but the Titans picked up a huge gain on a completion down the side.  Cole Jaczko stopped another long Titan gain with a tackle downfield, but Poway had the ball at the 30-yard line with 1:28 left in the Half.

              The Poway QB tried to go downfield on the next play, but Torrey Pines DB’s Liam Barnes and Jaczko broke up the pass.  Falcon Brian Cuff nearly intercepted the next throw.  Then two strong runs by Poway moved the chains, as the Titans took the ball to the 14-yard line with 0:35 left.  Poway used its timeouts and squeezed in three more plays to bring up first and 10 on the four yard line.   They completed a 4-yard TD pass with only 0:12 seconds before halftime.  Poway, 14-0.

              The Defense regrouped and kept Poway at bay in the second half.  But the Falcon offense continued to sputter.   An 8-play Torrey Pines drive showed some promise but, on 4th and 2, the Falcons were flagged for a false start and forced to punt.

              With barely 8 minutes left in the game, Poway mounted a long drive that took them down into Falcon territory and a 1st and Goal on the 5-yard line.  The Falcon line, lead by noseguard Phillip Wright plugged the middle to stop Poway at the 3 yard line.  Then Poway attempted to sweep outside but linebacker Ryan Crawford used his long right arm to grab a handful of jersey and pull the ball carrier out at the 2-yard line.  Consecutive QB sneaks failed as Wright and the rest of the middle came up with two huge stops.  Poway turned the ball over on downs.

               Lining up in their own end-zone, the Falcon O was unfortunately sacked for a safety.  Poway, 16-0.

              That score held up the rest of the way, despite pressure from the Poway Offense and another 9 play Titan drive in the final five minutes. 

              Notables:  Despite the heat, Jaxon McAllister carried the ball 15 times on Offense, had two tackles at safety, and was tasked with covering the entire width of the field on every play against a strong Titan passing game.  Lineman / Linebacker Jack Condon rarely came off the field, rotating at offensive guard with T-Bone and making two tackles on D.   D-End Ryan Bath was held repeatedly by the Titan tight ends, and still managed to make several tackles.  The Titans were finally called on one holding penalty, but the zebras could have flagged Ryan’s man half-a-dozen times.  There should be an investigation.  In the 5th quarter, DB Patrick Boyd had one of the best hits of the day (including the game), coming up from his coverage spot to decleat a Titan wide-out.  Starting QB Mark Detrow again looked strong at D-end, making two tackles in the 5th quarter.  Bath, playing tight end in the 5th showed tremendous hustle after an interception, racing 45-yards in an attempt to prevent the TD.