PALO ALTO, CA - In a disappointing season opener for the home team, Gunn faltered against the San Mateo Bearcats in Friday’s 43-6 loss.
“We played great defensively, scored on special teams and offensively we started to click together,” San Mateo coach Jeff Scheller said. According to Scheller, diligent preseason practicing and strong teamwork culminated in his team's strong appearance at Friday’s game.
San Mateo’s running back Line Latu also attributed their victory to a strong team spirit, fueled by a group meeting during the week. “We talked about being family and how we need to execute together and not get on each other [as a team], and that helped a lot,” he said.
Despite the dramatic final score, the game started off at a fairly slow pace, with neither team making any ground during the entire first quarter.
San Mateo found a spark after a 2-yard touchdown a few minutes into the second quarter, following a Gunn fumble. The Bearcats then gained control of the game’s momentum, staying in almost complete possession for the rest of the half and scoring another touchdown on a 2-yard running play by offensive lineman Josue Palacios Fonseca. By halftime, San Mateo was ahead 13-0.
Right from the start of the second half, the Bearcats got down to business. San Mateo charged across the field in a series of first downs to score another 2-yard touchdown, this time executed by running back Finau Hafoka.
After allowing San Mateo to score three touchdowns, Gunn finally started to fight back. Titans running back Sean Lydster ran through the Bearcats's defense for a 9-yard touchdown.
Unfortunately for Gunn, Lydster’s touchdown was to be its first and last success. San Mateo went on to dominate the rest of the game, scoring three more touchdowns, including a 95-yard touchdown by Latu, who rushed for 181 yards. Gunn not only felt pain on the scoreboard, but on the field as well, losing several players to injury.
“I’m disappointed, but I’m proud of how our kids kept fighting,” said first-year Gunn coach Schinichi Hirano, “We had a lot of injuries, but we were still able to come together and finish the game and it was nice to see that.”
Hirano also saw the game as an opportunity to examine the team’s weaknesses for their next game. “We’re really young on our line, so if we could fix that and learn to block some people I think [the next game] will be all right,” he said.
Next Friday, Gunn will have a chance at redemption at Carlmont, while San Mateo will be looking to continue their success at Berkeley.
