Golden Valley football survives late Saugus rally 

Saugus Centurion Landon Lattimore (17) is tackled down by numerous Golden Valley Grizzlies during Fridays game at Canyon High School. Katherine Quezada/The Signal
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The Golden Valley run game and senior Jamison Torres were a sight to behold on Friday night.  

Torres demolished Saugus, running for 272 yards and five touchdowns in the 44-35 win over the visiting Saugus Centurions at Canyon High School.  

Fans could tell Torres and the line would be in for a big night, as he took his first touch for a 20-yard run.  

Golden Valley’s Jamison Torres (6) avoids numerous Saugus Centurions as they attempt to stop him from running the ball during Friday’s game at Canyon High School. Katherine Quezada/The Signal

“They work hard day in, day out,” Torres said of his offensive line. “They’re at practice every day, weight room every day just getting better. So I’ve gotta praise them.”   

Saugus (2-7, 1-4) made some adjustments in the second half and quickly flipped a 37-14 score into just a 10-point deficit.  

Centurions quarterback Jake Nuttall led the solid passing outing with two touchdowns and over 200 yards passing.  

Saugus running back Ty Hall scored two on the ground and finished well over 100 total yards.  

Torres and the Grizzlies line pounded the Centurions in the ground game from the jump, The senior back went over 200 yards in the first half, where he also punched in three of his five touchdowns.  

Torres and running back Donnavan Anson posted one big run after another and finished the night with 17 rushes of six or more yards.  

Torres put Golden Valley (7-2, 3-2) up with a 19-yard touchdown for the first score of the game. He’d also punch in TD runs from 15 and 6 yards out on consecutive carries. 

Grizzlies coach Dan Kelley praised his senior running back, who starred at receiver and safety last season.  

“(Torres) has been a football player since he was probably in diapers,” Kelley said. “He knows the plays better than anybody out here. He’s getting better every week because he’s getting more familiar with the position and he knows the plays and and he runs hard, carries the pile, gets extra yards, and then when it’s time, he can spring one. He did a heck of a job for us tonight.” 

Anson had a stellar 44-yard touchdown run which he blasted through a big Saugus blitz. 

Golden Valley’s final score of the first half was set up after a tremendous play from the Grizzly defense. The linebacker Anson had Nuttall halfway down for a sack before he tried to get rid of the ball. Golden Valley junior Anthony Baldoze was ready for shanked pass and snagged it for an interception and big return.  

Nuttall was under duress for a good amount of the first half as Rico Lapid also added a sack  

Saugus quarterback Jake Nuttall (9) passes the ball to teammate Landon Lattimore (17) during Friday’s game against the Golden Valley Grizzlies at Canyon High School. Katherine Quezada/The Signal

Nuttall and Lattimore were held off the boards in the first half. The Saugus duo are no strangers to combining for big plays but only connected twice for two yards in the first two quarters before connecting for a 25-yard touchdown.  

“We could tackle a little better,” Kelley said. “Obviously, our secondary needs to cover a little better. Their quarterback kind of exposed us a little bit. We have to learn that we can’t stare at the scoreboard. We’ve got to play solid every play, no matter what the score is.” 

Ty Hall gave Saugus its only score of the first half with a 6-yard rushing touchdown that tied the score 7-7 in the first quarter.  

The Centurions recovered an onside kick during their scoring frenzy in the fourth quarter. Golden Valley was caught a little off guard by the play but recovered the next two onside attempts.  

The Grizzlies didn’t pass much but quarterback Brandon Contreras made some standout plays when needed. Contreras went 7-for-14 with 91 yards but made a difference with his pocket presence. The quarterback had two highlight-tape worthy scrambles where he evaded multiple sacks before finding Torres down the field.  

“I’ve been playing with (Contreras) since I was 6 years old, so there’s chemistry there,” Torres said. “He knows that I’m gonna be open and I know he’s gonna make the throw.” 

Saugus Centurion Kehanie Ortega (8) it tackled down by Golden Valley Grizzlies during Friday’s game at Canyon High School Katherine Quezada/The Signal

The win gives Kelley 60 career wins at Golden Valley. The coach knows nothing comes easy in the Foothill League so to make it this point is something special.  

“This is a tough league,” Kelley said. “Sixty wins is a credit to all the players that have played at Golden Valley since I’ve been here, buying into my philosophy and what we do in the weight room, in the off season and during the season. We don’t have a perfect season every year. We have some down years, but when we get the opportunity to have a year where we can be successful and a group of guys that want to do it, it seems like we can do it.” 

Saugus will look to finish off its season on a positive note against the Hart Hawks next Friday.  

With the win and a Canyon loss, Golden Valley officially clinches the third seed in league and the final automatic playoff spot.  

Golden Valley returns to Canyon next week as visitors for the regular season finale and a “win and you’re in game” for both the Grizzlies and Cowboys.  

Canyon and Golden Valley kick off on Friday at 7 p.m. 

Golden Valley’s Jordan Flores (9) misses the ball and Saugus Centurion Tre Lewis (33) fails at an attempt to intercept during Friday’s game at Canyon High School. Katherine Quezada/The Signal

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