With a 3-point lead in the third quarter, momentum seemed with the Saugus Centurions in Friday’s Foothill League clash against Hart.
But after three second-half touchdowns from Hart’s senior Matix Frithsmith, the Hawks prevailed, 34-17, in a come-from-behind win over Saugus.
“We came out a little flat to start the game, but [Saugus] is well coached, and they have great players,” Hart head coach Jake Goossen-Brown said. “We knew we had to come out and still play football. So, we were able to get it going and played much better in the second half.”
For Frithsmith, the senior recorded a total of four rushing touchdowns and played a few snaps under center when quarterback Camren Ketner went down with injury.
Frithsmith spoke on his performance to step in both at running back and quarterback, and roots back to his sophomore year when he played primary as a gunslinger.
“My coach is joking on the sidelines how many times I have to play quarterback,” Frithsmith said afterward. “My sophomore year I had to play QB, but I know what I had to get done, as an athlete, so I just try to take off with my legs a lot.”
Going into Friday’s matchup, both teams’ offenses each scored 49 points in their last respective games and entered with high-scoring players.
But instead of the fireworks fans may have expected to see, defense reigned supreme under the lights at College of the Canyons’ Cougar Stadium.
On the first play of the game, Frithsmith fumbled on the kickoff return and handed the Centurions (4-2, 1-1) field position in the red zone.
The Centurions capitalized on the field position with a Mono Ortega rushing touchdown.
But on the next series, Frithsmith was sure to atone for his mistake and scored a touchdown of his own.
The teams dueled but neither scored until the first half’s final minute. Hart (4-1, 1-0) took a 14-10 lead going into the locker room following a 3-yard Joshua Rogozik touchdown.
In the second half, both teams turned up the pressure.
On the first drive of the second half, Saugus’ Landon Lattimore broke out for a 29-yard touchdown. But in the next series, Frithsmith answered right back with a 1-yard touchdown to hand the Hawks the lead back 21-17.
After both teams traded three-and-outs, the Centurions had the ball 10 yards out of the end zone.
Hart’s defense forced Saugus’ Brayden Connelly to throw an incomplete pass and swung momentum toward the Hawks.
On the next two drives on offense for Hart, Frithsmith ran in for two more touchdowns, including a 91-yard dash down the sideline.
Frithsmith ended the day with 201 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
Following the game, Goossen-Brown spoke on his defense forcing the Centurions to commit a turnover on downs prior to the pair of touchdowns from Frithsmith and swinging backthe momentum.
“I was pumped up,” Goossen-Brown said. “I just thought now we have to run the ball all the way down to win now. So, to have a 90-yard run after that, we got all the momentum back.”
In the end, Hart’s defense held Saugus’ Brayden Connelly to 13 for 16 pass attempts for 133 yards. Saugus freshman Zach Barnes tossed for 43 yards on eight for 13 pass attempts.
As for Saugus’ run game, running back Mono Ortega was held to 42 rushing yards and the lone touchdown in the first quarter.
The Hawks improved to 4-1 on the season.
Following a series of victories over multi-win teams, Goossen-Brown is feeling good about his team’s play in the first half of the season but believes there is still much to work on after the team’s Foothill League opener.
“We’re going to go back and watch the film,” Goossen-Brown said. “We’re going to figure out what we need to do better, which I think we still have a lot to clean up still. And thenwe’ll start preparing to beat Golden Valley.”
Hart faces a quick turnaround as the Hawks match up against the Golden Valley Grizzlies at Canyon High School on Thursday at 7 p.m.
As for Saugus, the loss dropped the Centurions to 4-2 on the season and 1-1 in Foothill League play.
While Saugus remains two games above .500, the Centurions face another challenge next week in a matchup against the Valencia Vikings, the reigning three-time Foothill League champion.
The Vikings are coming off back-to-back 40-plus Foothill League victories in the past two weeks and are ranked as the No. 61 team in the Southern Section, according to MaxPreps.
The Centurions host the Vikings Friday at College of the Canyons’ Cougar Stadium with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m.
For more on Frithsmith’s performance, watch his postgame interview here at https://youtu.be/lfR74XbABL8
