The Point Loma Pointers football team upped its season record to 3-1 with a 14-0 victory over CIF Div. III Morse on its home turf Sept. 19.
In a non-league encounter, all of the Div. I Pointers’ points came in a span of less than five minutes in the second quarter as both teams were hurt by fumbles on a warm, dry afternoon.
With 11:13 left before halftime, Pointer defenders stalled the Tigers on a fourth-down play to gain possession.
The stop seemed to energize the Dogs. Jaylen Griffin broke free for a run of more than 50 yards before being forced out of bounds. From there, sophomore Tshombré Carter put his team on the scoreboard with a dash through the Morse defense.
Following the kickoff, the Tigers let the pigskin escape once more, and the Pointers recovered with 8:42 left in the second quarter.
Again the Pointers marched down the field, with Tim O’Brien’s (6 feet, 7 inches) catch and run resulting in a first down at the Tiger two-yard line.
From here, the Morse defense stopped the Pointers on three consecutive runs up the middle before Griffin swept left for the touchdown with 6:38 left before the break.
Other than this span, neither team was able to mount a scoring drive, with strong defense and fumbles by both offenses often the culprit.
The loss drops Morse to 0-4.
The Pointers head east to Santee on Friday, Sept. 26 for their first visit to Santana High. The Dogs downed the Sultans 35-3 last year at home. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. at the Grossmont-Valley League school. The Sultans, also a Div. III team, stand at 2-2 after wins against San Diego Southwest and Kearny. They have lost to Castle Park and Francis Parker. POINT LOMA 40, LINCOLN 20
The points came quickly and more often for the Pointers Sept. 12 when they traveled to Southeast San Diego to face the Hornets during a recent heat wave.
The Dogs clearly learned after seeing Ramona block two of their kick attempts the previous week. On this night, however, the Pointers returned the favor, blocking two early Hornet punt attempts that led to a Jaime Medina field goal and a Gavin Grady touchdown run for a 9-0 lead as the first quarter ended.
With second quarter scores on runs by Jacob Ehm and Carter, the Pointers took a 23-12 lead at halftime.
A pass from Grady to a leaping Carter in the end zone and another Medina field goal upped the margin to 33-12 after three periods.
With numerous Pointer reserves gaining valuable playing time, the Dogs scored yet again.
Backup quarterback Brenden Torrence scrambled for yardage on the drive before Sergio Gallegos crossed the goal line for the final Pointer score. EXTRA POINTS
• The Pointers are one point away from being undefeated, their lone loss coming in a 7-6 disappointment against powerful Ramona.
• The younger Pointer teams also sit at 3-1 after the freshmen (23-6) and junior varsity (15-12) recorded victories against Morse.
• Alexandra Van Heuven has taken over as athletic director at PLHS, replacing John Murphy. She is also the school’s head track and field coach, assistant girls’ varsity soccer coach and coordinator of the school’s weight room.
• Pointer defensive standout Cole Kidd suffered a concussion at Lincoln when a teammate’s knee struck his head. He was inactive against Morse, but should return Sept. 26 at Santana.
