The La Jolla Country Day (LJCD) Torreys defeated the H-Town Lions, 24-7, in a Nov. 10 Pacific League football game at Country Day.
“We think that this will be our toughest league opponent,” LJCD coach Jeff Hutzler said prior to the contest.
After the Torreys got on the scoreboard first on a 27-yard field goal by junior kicker Travis Golia in the second quarter, H-Town quickly hollered back.
Senior wide receiver Robert Young (five catches, 99 yards) reeled in an 18-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback George Newkirk to make the score 7-3 in favor of the Lions just before the teams headed to the locker room at halftime.
“We wanted to get better each week and peak here at the end of the season,” Hutzler said.
LJCD began to show improvement after the intermission when senior running back Collin Tuck took one in from 1 yard out to put the Torreys back out in front 10-7 in the third quarter.
“The team is improving and it’s working hard,” Hutzler said.
Country Day continued to work hard in the second half when senior running back Kevin Ings (19 carries, 61 yards) scored on a 3-yard touchdown run and junior tight end Mark Hannum hauled in a 4-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Matt Mulligan as LJCD pulled away for the victory.
“I hope we continue to improve,” Hutzler said. “We have to if we want to go far in the playoffs. It’s hard to predict. The sky’s the limit.”
With the win, the Torreys (8-1, 6-0) clinched their third straight Pacific League title. Meanwhile, senior running back Joshua Tauanuu led H-Town (6-4, 6-1) with 13 carries for 96 yards.
Next, neighborhood rivals will square off on the gridiron this Friday evening, Nov. 24, as LJCD and The Bishop’s School tangle in the second round of the CIF Division V playoffs at 7:30 p.m. at La Jolla High. LJCD made it to the next round with last weekend’s 48-8 rout of Army/Navy Academy.
The win was especially sweet for the Torreys, who dropped a 6-3 decision to Army/Navy back in September.
In this second encounter, LJCD used a balanced effort to get the win. Collin Tuck led the way on defense with 11 tackles (five solos), while adding 82 yards rushing and a TD on the offensive side of the ball. Teammate Kevin Ings rushed for 80 yards and a score.
LJCD QB Matt Mulligan got in on the act with a touchdown pass and finished the night with 140 yards passing. His scoring strike was a 29-yard strike to Alex Maire. Maire also scooped up an Army/Navy fumble on a punt and returned it 21 yards for a TD and added a 75-yard kickoff return for a score.