Smack ’em in the mouth — that has become the rallying cry for the surging Bishop’s football team. Coined by two-way senior standout Alec Fisher, the phrase has taken on a life of its own. The Knights (12-0) punched their ticket to the CIF Division V finals with a convincing 47-21 victory over Christian High at La Jolla’s Edwards Stadium on Dec. 3. “In the end, these kids just make plays and that’s nice,” said Knights head coach Joel Allen. It was Fisher who got Bishop’s rolling with a four-yard touchdown run early in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead. Behind the solid play of quarterback Shane Dillon, the Patriots were able to answer on a long touchdown pass to Kyle Harris to make the score 7-6 after a missed extra point. Knights’ quarterback Joey Moreno quickly restored order. He threw a scoring pass to Dominique Love on a nice screen play then used his legs on Bishop’s next drive for a nine-yard touchdown run and 20-6 lead. “They were pinching and the outside was wide open, so I just bounced out and hit it,” the junior said of his rushing score. Christian (6-6) clawed back and cut the lead to 20-15 at the half. But the Knights opened the third quarter with a back-breaking eight-minute drive that ended with Fisher blasting into the end zone from a yard out to make it 26-15. “That really changed the whole dynamic of the game,” Allen said. Bishop’s scored again late in the third when Moreno found Micah Seau for a five-yard strike to put the Knights up 33-15. Tyrone Sauls kept the Patriots hopes alive with a 10-yard rushing score to make it 33-21. Then it turned into the “Austin Fisher Show.” The senior running back sealed the victory with long touchdown runs of 36 and 55 yards in the fourth quarter. Fisher thrived as the prominent piece in the offense with the Patriots clearly game-planning around stopping his brother. “They [Christian] did a great job of stopping our outside run,” Allen said. “When they did that, there was only two options, throw it or feed it to Austin. He [Austin] stepped up tonight and played really well. I was proud of him.” Just a win away from a perfect season, the only thing left in the way is two-time defending section champ Francis Parker. The third-seeded Lancers (6-6) put a hurting on a depleted Knights’ squad in the CIF semifinals in 2009. “This is what we’ve been working for my whole football career,” Alec Fisher said. “Parker humiliated us last year and we’re hoping to humiliate them this year.” When asked what will need to happen to beat Parker, Knights’ senior receiver Adam Malkiewicz summed it up simply. “Smack ’em in the mouth, baby,” he replied. The Division V championship game will be played at Mesa College at 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 10.
