By Nathan Graham
For The Signal
It was the tale of two halves in Hart’s second preleague game on Friday as they defeated Arcadia, 31-27, at College of the Canyons on Friday.
It was all offense in the first half as the Indians were fueled by junior quarterback Zach Johnson’s 196 passing yards and four total touchdowns.
The Indians defense showed up in the second half, only allowing the Apaches (1-1) into Indian territory once on a 50-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Dylan Guerra.
Johnson, a junior, ended the game 18-of-31 for 255 passing yards, three passing touchdowns and one rushing on the day.
“He just had amazing composure tonight,” said coach Mike Herrington. “We had probably five of six drops and the interception was probably his only real mistake out there today.”
Johnson got the game started with a seven-yard touchdown run diving towards the left pylon. Arcadia answered right back with a 50-yard screen pass touchdown to senior wide receiver Rolandiss Whitener.
In the first half, Hart (1-1) was able to string together a couple possessions in a row after a punt recovery gave them field possession in Arcadia’s red zone. Johnson found senior receiver Michael Colangelo in the back of the endzone for a 10-yard touchdown pass, giving the Indians a 14-7 lead.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Indians elected to go with a surprise onside kick and were able to recover the ball at the 50 yard line. A defensive breakdown by the Apaches left junior wideout Drew Munoz wide open for an easy 55-yard touchdown to give the Indians a 21-7 lead at the start of the second quarter.
The Apaches came fighting back with a couple touchdowns of their own and the score at half was a close 21-14 score at half.
It was all defense in the second half with the Indians and Apaches scoring a combined nine points. Quarterback Zach Johnson was the star of the game but he had nothing but praise for how his defense performed in the second half.
“It was amazing,” said Johnson. “We come out in the second half and only gave up six points which helped us out tremendously on the offensive end.”
Hart will look to get their second win of the season as they face off against Burbank at home on Sept. 7.
