An injured Lester Arnold made all the difference in the second half Friday afternoon at Point Loma High School, helping the Pointers outscore Crawford 35-7.
“We were resting Lester. We were gonna keep him out the whole game, but it’s hard to keep him out. Toward the end of the half he asked if he could suit up, saying, ‘The team needs me’," said head coach Mike Hastings. "The guy’s all about the team, and it just made a huge difference for us. He’s the catalyst for the team. They love him. He just leads by his actions."
For most of the game it was back and forth, with three-and-outs the norm rather than the exception. But the third quarter demonstrated why the Pointers are defending Western League champions when they racked up 21 points while the Colts only managed one score off a long kickoff return. The Dogs added two more touchdowns in the final period to seal the deal while holding Crawford scoreless.
"In the first half we were a little sluggish. Coach gave us a pep talk and got us up a little bit," said senior lineman Daniel Bell. "We need to think more about the game before we get out there “” we need to keep our heads in it from the beginning."
With a few minutes left in the first quarter, Drew Callejon intercepted a pass and took the ball to the 20-yard line, but the Dogs lost the ball right away, sealing the scoreless first period. Just a few seconds into the second, though, Lucas Shaw kept the ball for a short three-yard trip into the end zone for the game’s first touchdown. Senior Josh Feliciano came in to replace injured kicker Steven Padilla, adding another point on his first of six PATs.
"We came out slow. Our offense was stopped a lot “” we didn’t have anything going for us, but the defense was playing well," said senior receiver/defensive back Drew Callejon.
Midway through the second quarter, still struggling to keep a drive going, Lucas Shaw got pressured and, in an attempt to get rid of the ball and avoid a sack, allowed a Colt defender to intercept and run the ball in for six. A few minutes later, another speedy Crawford ball carrier punched through a hole in the line to get their second TD of the half, putting Point Loma in a 7-14 hole going into the locker room.
"We have a lot of confidence in Shaw. When he had time to throw the ball, he hit our talented receivers like Drew Callejon deep," said Hastings. "That guy’s (Callejon) a first-class receiver, going up big and catching the ball for us. Our line blocked better in the second half, and all 11 kind of clicked."
The second half was a totally different game, with Lester Arnold returning to the gridiron to battle it out, hurt toe and all. Arnold carried the ball right away, and it wasn’t too long before Shaw was able to keep the ball for another short touchdown, this time from the 1. However, the Colts’ kickoff returner had big ideas and took the ball all the way down the field for their last TD of the contest.
Arnold got his chance to increase the score when he carried in from the 3-yard line a few minutes later. The game was now tied, but far from over. Drew Callejon had been running deep routes all afternoon, and the 32-yard haul for six was his first touchdown of the game as time ran out on the third quarter.
Josh Wade added the fifth score for the Pointers when he broke from 12 yards out after a great drive, including a big catch by Arnold seconds earlier. Less than two minutes later, Wade, playing defensive back, intercepted a ball on the 32, setting up teammate Arnold for a TD of the same yardage.
"We have two weeks now to prepare for Hoover. They were tough last year, our closest game," said Callejon. "It’ll be a challenge."
The Pointers have a bye this week, allowing them to regroup and heal from the inevitable bumps, bruises and assorted injuries.