ANTIOCH,CA--- Najee Harris’ trio of touchdowns were enough to help the host Antioch Panthers prevail, as they advanced to the semifinals of the NCS Division 1 playoffs with a 29-17 victory over the visiting San Ramon Valley Wolves.
With Antioch leading 15-10, though, it appeared San Ramon Valley may have gotten the break it needed, recovering a Harris fumble. Two plays later, however, Elijah Avery did the same for the Panthers, and Harris capped the ensuing drive with a seven-yard scoring run, his final touchdown of the game.
Harris was in business early in the game, finishing Antioch's initial scoring drive with a five-yard touchdown run. He soon followed that up after an easy one-yard trot, following a 25-yard scramble by sophomore quarterback Willem Karnthong. Antioch failed to convert the two point conversions, giving it an early 12-0 lead.
San Ramon Valley fired back in this crucial game, as junior quarterback Clark Baker found Jackson Palmer for a 18-yard touchdown, bringing the Wolves within five at the half.
“We felt good going into halftime,” said Antioch’s Isaiah Dunn. “We just needed to come back strong and fix our mistakes”
It was a dual of kickers in the early minutes of the second half, as Antioch's Abraham Torres hit a 25-yard field goal to extend the Panthers lead to 15-7.
“Every day in practice they had me kicking because they knew there was going to be a time for me,” said Torres. “Today was my time.”
San Ramon Valley senior Johan Zetterberg countered back, however, as he nailed a 27-yard field goal to again close the gap to five points, this time at 15-10. Zetterberg is ranked as a 4.5-star kicker by Chris Sailer, who compiles national rankings for kickers.
After Harris' third score of the game, Antione Tanner put the game out of reach, as he scored on a 36-yard catch-and-run from Karnthong, breaking multiple tackles along the way. Baker cut into the lead again, hitting Michael Winaker for a 14-yard touchdown, but it only served as window dressing at that point.
Harris not only scored three times on offense, but also spearheaded a strong defensive effort at outside linebacker.
“He came up to me prior to the game and told me he could play defense tonight,” said Antioch coach John Lucido. “He's banged up and tired but he does it for the team.”
With the win, Antioch advances to the semifinals of the NCS Division 1 playoffs, where the Panthers will face the winner of California and Foothill, which will take place Saturday night at 7 PM.
