Amidst the realignment in the Monterey area, 2017 is the final season of the Mission Trail Athletic League, and there’s no shortage of drama to be had. Two rivals and one newcomer all sit at one loss with two weeks of league play remaining.
Scotts Valley, in the league after the MTAL absorbed the SCCAL’s teams, was undefeated in league play before a 19-3 loss at Soledad (5-3, 3-1). At the moment, King City (5-3, 4-1) has the edge over the Aztecs and Falcons, but with the Mustangs playing their final league game on Saturday at Carmel (4-4, 2-2), the race could look entirely different within another week. A win would guarantee no worse than a share of the league title for King City, which hasn’t claimed a league championship since 1982.
“At the beginning of the year, I was talking with my coaches and we said it would be awesome if an original member could win it in the last year of the MTAL,” said Mustangs head coach Mac Villanueva. Villanueva is no stranger to King City’s history; it’s his sixth year as head coach and 12th overall with the program.
King City entered the year with high expectations, but things took a severe hit before the first game as Tommy Stephens suffered a torn ACL and MCL in the South County Jamboree. Stephens, who threw for 1,840 yards as a junior, was going to start at both quarterback and cornerback.
“We had to change our offense around a little bit and scale it back,” said Villanueva. Luis Luna, who had served as backup QB while starting at wide receiver, shifted into the full-time quarterback role.
“We knew we had a solid backup, but we didn’t know how we’d respond or how the team would respond,” said Villanueva.
Those immediate responses weren’t pretty, as the Mustangs suffered lopsided losses in their first two game, both against opponents from the MBL Gabilan Division. However, those games were against King City’s stiffest competition, and the Mustangs have won five of six since that 0-2 start. It wasn’t the offense that needed to find its footing as much as the defense did. Since allowing 81 points in the first two games, the Mustangs have allowed just 68 in their last six.
In league play, King City has held three opponents under ten points. The only exceptions were the two other league title contenders. Scotts Valley beat the Mustangs 24-0. Soledad put 17 points on the board against the Mustangs and was driving to win the game when King City’s Clay Barbree came up with an 85-yard pick six for the winning score.
King City’s defense may have its toughest test of league play on Saturday when the Mustangs visit Carmel. The Padres have put up 90 points in their past two games. Carmel suffered losses to both Scotts Valley (5-3, 3-1) and Soledad, meaning the Padres will need some help to get back in the race. San Lorenzo Valley (4-4, 2-2) is in the same boat, and has yet to play either the Aztecs or Falcons.
However the MTAL race does shake out, the mix of charter members, long-tenured teams and transitioning newcomers has provided for an exciting race to close the book on a league that’s maintained its small-town roots and made for some great local rivalries.
Weekly Mount Hamilton chaos update
Finally, there’s something resembling structure in the BVAL Mount Hamilton. With Oak Grove winning 17-7 at Lincoln and Live Oak shutting out Santa Teresa at home, the winner of this Friday’s game between the Eagles and Acorns will leave the winner all alone in first place for at least a moment. Live Oak would seem to be the favorite, having put up 35 points on a Santa Teresa defense that hadn’t allowed more than 20 points in more than a month, including a 20-6 win over Oak Grove, but considering the trends in this year’s Mount Hamilton League, it’ll likely have very little bearing on what happens when the teams take the field.
Piedmont Hills led Leigh 29-13 after one quarter and went on to win 64-48, a final score that would make sense if the teams were playing basketball. Leigh has dropped three straight after a 4-0 start and is allowing an average of 50 points per game in those three losses.
Pioneer sits at 2-2 in league play after a 30-21 win at Westmont. The Mustangs won just one league game in 2016.
Willow Glen (5-2, 3-1) could unleash similar madness in the Santa Teresa League if the Rams can knock off rival Leland (7-0, 4-0). Branham and Independence currently sit tied with Willow Glen for second place.
Playoff berths at stake in Gabilan
The MBL was one of the only leagues to play games on October 13, so with the exception of Alvarez and Aptos, the league will have Veterans’ Day off. While Aptos (5-2, 4-0) and Salinas (6-2, 5-0) have locked up spots atop the league, the third and fourth spots, which are guaranteed playoff berths, are very much up for grabs. Seaside (5-3, 2-3) will travel to Palma (4-4, 3-2) in a game that could decide whether or not the Chieftains’ playoff streak reaches a 33rd consecutive year. Palma finishes the season by hosting San Benito (5-3, 3-2), and Seaside concludes its schedule at Monte Vista Christian (4-4, 2-3).
Waiting game for Trojans
Alisal improved to 5-4 with a 48-6 win over North Monterey County, and should the heavily-favored Trojans top Pajaro Valley this week, they’ll find themselves in the Division IV playoff field. However, Alisal had the final week of the season scheduled off, and with the Trojans playing the week of October 13, and spoiling Christopher’s homecoming with a double overtime win, Alisal would be sitting for two weeks before beginning postseason play.
Mountain View throws wrench into El Camino race
While the heavyweights took care of business in the SCVAL De Anza League, the El Camino Division was thrown for a loop as Mountain View (3-4, 2-2) upset Santa Clara (5-2, 3-1). The Bruins’ loss leaves Cupertino (5-2, 3-0) alone in first place, and the Pioneers will host Santa Clara on November 10. It’s highly likely that Santa Clara would split the title with a win, and Cupertino would take it outright with a victory over the Bruins.
Clark adds to Kezar lore
Kezar Stadium continues to be the site of amazing games, with Riordan’s 26-20 overtime win over St. Ignatius to claim the Gil Haskell Trophy joining the lengthy list of classic games at the vaunted stadium. Travis Benham connected with sophomore Je’Lani Clark in the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown after the Riordan defense stopped SI on fourth and goal to begin overtime. Clark, who set a school record for free-throw percentage in his freshman year, has already proven his excellence on both the gridiron and hardwood, and could certainly end up among Riordan’s finest athletes in recent years, a list that includes Marquise Kately and Eric Wright. St. Ignatius also lost a Bruce-Mahoney thriller at Kezar, 21-14 to Sacred Heart Cathedral.
Hard work pays off
Mt. Pleasant picked up its first victory of the season on Friday with a 21-6 win over James Lick. The win snapped a 15-game losing streak for the Cardinals, and extended James Lick's skid to 11 games.
Unbeaten watch
All seven unbeaten teams in the section maintained their perfect records, but at least one will fall this week in the Half Moon Bay-Aragon showdown. Aragon travels to rival Hillsdale on November 3, meaning that a maximum of five teams can complete a perfect regular season.
