For the Point Loma High School varsity football team, Saturday’s home opener was a hard-fought but unsuccessful battle. Many of the young Pointers players learned how good the athletes can be in the Southern Section of CIF.
The Pointers were on the losing end of the contest, going down to defeat 18-11.
The game started very slowly for the offense, the first (and only) Pointer touchdown coming with only seven minutes left in the third quarter.
Credit goes to the defense, though Point Loma kept the score within reach throughout the contest. Because of that and a recovered on-side kick with three minutes left, it was anyone’s game until the last minute.
“I’m proud of my kids. They worked their butts off and they never quit,” said PLHS head coach Mike Hastings. “We worked hard to get ready for these guys and slugged it out with them. We just ran out of time at the end.
“It was a hard fought game on both sides,” he said. “Pointer Pride, never stop playin.’ We got that on-side kick and it was our game to win, we just couldn’t get another one across.”
The second half looked more promising than the first, with the first Pointer possession producing a long run by sophomore running back Leslie Rogers up the right side. The play was called back, however, and the drive stalled.
It wasn’t until senior wide receiver Thomas Dobbs broke from his defender for a big catch to put the Dogs on the board, while big senior tight end Hector Fernandez pulled the ball in for the two-point conversion.
The few bright spots were not enough with the physical nature of the big Cathedral defense, and the first-half turnovers were tough to recover from.
“We’re a good team. We just need to stop turning the ball over,” said senior quarterback David Jaros. “Four or five times in the first half, you just can’t win games like that.
“We need to work on blocking overall, especially on blitzing, too many linebackers were getting on today, but we’ll be back next week and play better,” he said.
The team has had a rough start this year. In addition to losing the majority of the offensive starters from last year, the team has also been plagued by injuries very early. Junior running back Matt Arlington, who was a prolific ball carrier last year behind Lester Arnold, was thought to have sprained his knee. An MRI was done, and doctors concluded Arlington’s ACL is torn. As a result, he will likely not return this year.
Eduardo Bustamonte, a force to be reckoned with as a senior lineman, has a badly sprained ankle. He is confident that he’ll be suiting up for the Culver City game (Sept. 14). On top of those injuries, at least four players came off the field with bad leg cramps Saturday on multiple occasions. This being the case, the health of the team will certainly be a key to winning their league.
“Everyone played their hearts out today, but we need to move the ball better on offense and the defense needs to fly to the ball better,” said senior linebacker Alex Blair. “We need to be a swarm. This offensive line has great potential. They just need to figure it all out. This is only the second game. It’s a team effort, and we’ll get better.”
The coaches appear to have a good handle on what’s happening with the team, and will have to figure out which personnel can make the most impact at each position. This is especially true because there are so many new faces this year.
“Our goal is to get ready for the Western League and try to take that championship,” said Hastings. “That’s always been our goal. So we’re going to keep working hard. Playing tough teams like Cathedral gets you ready.
“There’s a lot of kids that are playing for the first time at the varsity level, and they’re stepping up,” he said. “They’re learning and growing and they’re not backing down. They’re competing, and we’re only going to get better.”
The Pointers head north to play Culver City High School in Los Angeles this Friday before heading back to PLHS to meet Otay Ranch at 3 p.m. on Sept. 21.