Point Loma High School’s (PLHS) 2010 varsity football team put the exclamation mark on a season-opening triple-header Sept. 4 with a decisive 41-24 drubbing of Escondido’s Orange Glen High School at home on Bennie Edens Field. On this, the first Saturday of the new prep football season on the Peninsula, the Pointers responded with three PLHS victories between the varsity, junior varsity (40-0) and the freshman (32-10) teams. Cheerleaders in new uniforms urged on a large crowd that savored the aroma of barbecued burgers during the sunshine-splashed opener. The varsity Pointers sputtered to a 14-10 halftime advantage over the pesky Patriots on the strength of a 19-yard scoring pass from senior quarterback Sean McKaveney to junior Aaron Watkins, followed by McKaveney’s one-yard dive with 38 seconds left before the break. After halftime, a different breed of Dogs took the field. “In the first half, we had our assignments down but we just weren’t playing with fire,” said senior center Martin “Big Red” Gelenter, a 6’4,” 275-pound leader in the Pointer trenches. “We came out in the third quarter and took it to them, sticking to our blocks.” Pointer head coach Mike Hastings agreed. “We made some great adjustments and just took the game over physically and really finished them off in the third quarter,” Hastings said. “We worked on tackling better on defense and holding onto the ball offensively.” The 14-10 halftime edge became a 41-10 Pointer lead after three quarters,  the hosts scoring 27 unanswered points in just 12 minutes of play. Junior Jaivon Griffin’s churning legs accounted for two touchdowns in the period with runs of 20 and four yards. Eric Bueno also blasted ahead one yard for a score and sophomore Zach Eischen ran an interception back 42 yards for a touchdown in his varsity debut. Eischen had a second interception in the final quarter that he ran back to the Patriots’ four-yard line. He likely has secured a varsity position, making a successful leap from last year’s freshman squad. The Pointers amassed 223 yards on the ground, averaging 6.4 yards on 35 plays. Griffin, at 5’5″ and 145 pounds, totaled 141 yards on 14 carries to pace the Pointers. Other totals included McKaveney (34 yards), Bueno (22) and junior Morris Mathews (21). Through the air, McKaveney completed four of nine throws for 52 yards. Besides Watkins’ touchdown, other passes were caught by Mathews and seniors Thomas Mize and Johnny Castaneda. On defense, sacks were credited to brothers Christian (senior) and Tevin (junior) Heyward, junior Jon Denae Bailey and senior Hunter Hirsch. Junior kicking specialists Ruben Diaz and Felipe Soares each tacked on points, with Diaz connecting on three of four PATs and Soares drilling each of his two attempts. “We’re young, we have talent and we have to come together as a team,” said Gelenter. “We lost nearly all of our starters from last year.” While pleased, Hastings agreed there is still room for improvement. “We’re happy to get the win,” said Hastings. “It was our first game with a lot of kids who haven’t played varsity football. There are a lot of things we can do better.” The Patriots relied on the pass, picking up 243 yards through the air. Halfback Chris Locher (a burly 6’2,” 225 pounder) caught seven balls for 110 yards including one 51-yard jaunt in which several Pointers missed tackles. “We put that ball in the endzone with great field position set up by our defense,” Hastings said. “Our defense scored and we won the battle of turnovers. When you do that, you’re going to win most games.” The Pointers now travel to face another set of Patriots, this time from Patrick Henry High School in Del Cerro. In next Saturday’s triple-header, the varsity play begins at 6 p.m. preceded by the freshmen squad at noon and the junior varsity team at 3 p.m. On Sept. 17, the Dogs head east for a showdown with El Capitan High School in Lakeside starting at 7 p.m.