Cardinals football (3-2, 0-1) blew out the hosting Malibu Sharks (2-3) 54-0 on Friday.
It was a total team win for Santa Clarita Christian. Quarterback Cayden Rappleye led the offense with five touchdowns. The sophomore gunslinger threw two TDs while scoring three on the ground to go along with 103 rushing yards.
Junior Noah Butler made his debut for the Cardinals on Friday and put on a show. The transfer from Saugus led the team with three sacks and four tackles for a loss after ending his sit-out period.
Sophomore Jonathan Boelter also had a great pass rush night with two sacks.
SCCS head coach Austin Fry was proud of his team’s fight and finish. Even the substitutes who got into the game late fought just as hard as the starters to keep the Sharks at zero.
“There wasn’t a down where our guys were not locked in and engaged and it showed,” said Fry.
Both Rappleye and running back Timmy Tadler posted impressive nights for the Cards, who have nearly abandoned the run game since their season opener. Tadler finished the day with 11 carries for 62 yards.
Fry has been pushing his young quarterback to run more and that came into fruition Friday. Designed runs with some smart scrambles led to the big day on the ground for Rappleye.
The Cardinals registered their first shutout in years in their head coach’s return to the team. Fry missed the team’s matchup with Coast Union and the team showed how much they missed him with a complete victory.
“It definitely was the best top to bottom game we’ve played this year,” said Fry. “Obviously there’s always going to be mistakes but it was a complete game on our part.”
Fry will hope to see his team continue this fight and keep building on the foundation. The program is in its second year back after a brief shutdown but is quickly shaping back into SCCS football.
“[I want to see them] just build on this and not settle,” said Fry. “It’d be really easy after a win like this to feel like you made it.”
The Cardinals will return home Saturday for their first home game in over a month. SCCS will host Liberty Christian in a Liberty League matchup Saturday at Canyon at 5:30 p.m.
