By Matt Lechuga
For The Signal
Golden Valley’s game plan going into Friday’s CIF-SS Division 7 opening round was simple: give the ball to Jamison Torres and get out of the way.
It’s a simple strategy but it worked perfectly for the Grizzlies as they defeated the visiting El Toro Chargers 35-21 at Canyon High School.
The senior running back finished the game with 52 carries for 258 yards and two rushing touchdowns.
“There were a couple of things involved here: a little strategy and also one heck of a running game,” said Golden Valley head coach Dan Kelley. “Our offensive line played great tonight, and obviously, Jamison ran really hard. We wanted to run the ball and keep their offense off the field, eat clock and move the chains. And it worked out.”
The Grizzlies’ first possession set the tone for the entire game as they leaned on Torres to set up the offense, carrying the ball eight times and setting up an 11-yard play-action touchdown pass from quarterback Brandon Contreras to fullback Jason Acevedo for an early 7-0 lead.
“We knew we have a good line, a good attack, we knew we could run the ball so we just stuck with it,” said Torres. “Our defense played well tonight. I feel good going into the next round.”
No drive exemplified the Golden Valley game plan better than its second. Starting at their own 15-yard line, the Grizzlies ground out an 18-play drive, Torres carrying the ball in 13 of them, that started near the end of the first quarter and ended on an 8-yard pass from Contreras to AJ Deronvil in the back of the end zone with 4:14 left to play before the half.
El Toro, the third-place finisher in the Iota League, responded immediately with a 70-yard run on an option by junior running back Makya Chee to cut the Golden Valley lead to seven heading into halftime.
The Chargers quickly struck again, recovering an onside kick to open the second half and tying the game on a one-yard run up the middle by Chee.
They’re a big, power offense,” said Kelley. “They’re quick striking; they scored on that long run and then the fade later in the game. We just had to keep them off the field.”
Golden Valley did just that on its next drive with a 10-play, 80-yard drive that ran just over five minutes off the clock. Again, it was Torrest setting the table and Contreras finishing it, this time with a 19-yard pass to junior tight end Anthony Baldoze to make it a 21-14 lead.
Contreras was efficient when given the ball, finishing 7-8 for 74 yards and three touchdowns while adding 16 yards on four carries.
On the Grizzlies next two drives it was all Torres. The first he rushed seven straight straight times, capping the 60-yard drive with an 8-yard run up the middle. The second drive was six straight with a 22-yard scoring run, his longest run of the night, extending the Golden Valley lead to 35-14.
El Toro scored on a 31-yard pass from quarterback Jack Mckelvy to Luke Doyle to make it 35-21 but the Grizzlies stayed true to the plan and ran the game out from there.
“The second round will be tougher,” said Kelley. “As you know, the further you advance the tougher the games get. We’ll keep working and move on to next week.”
The Grizzlies will face Warren after their 35-7 win over Palm Desert next Friday.
