The Division 2 bracket of the Central Coast Section playoffs started off with a bang as No. 1 Los Gatos came out and dominated No. 8 Live Oak, defeating the Acorns 41-7.
After an early score from Live Oak, the Wildcats were able to completely shut them down with a fine-tuned defensive effort. On the offensive side of the ball, Los Gatos showcased its wide assortment of weapons with each of the Wildcats' six touchdowns being scored by a different player.
Los Gatos (10-1) had some key players return from injuries this week, including team captain Tyler Schexnydre, who plays a huge role on the offensive line. With the line at full health, the Wildcats utilized receiver Gian Lagemann at the six-back position and established him as a rushing threat for the first time this season, where he recorded a season-high seven carries for 45 yards and a touchdown. Lagemann also picked up two receptions for 28 yards.
“The offensive line played their butts off. They came out with all of the energy in the world and dominated up front,” said Lagemann. “They were definitely the reason why we were so effective with the six-back rush tonight.”
The offensive line definitely did their part in opening up holes for star running back Adam Garwood, which is nothing new for Los Gatos. Garwood had 20 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown. Passing for the Wildcats was solid as well, with quarterback Yost Girvan going 8-of-11 for 171 yards and two total touchdowns.
Live Oak (9-2) quarterback Caleb Ojeda led the Acorns deep into Wildcat territory on their very first drive with the help of running back AJ Gustavenson, who took the majority of the team’s carries throughout the game. Ojeda eventually took it in himself for a nine-yard rushing touchdown, which he followed up with a good PAT.
Other than its first drive, Live Oak only entered the red zone one other time which resulted in a missed field goal. Los Gatos head coach Mark Krail made all of the defensive adjustments necessary after that first drive to keep the Acorns at seven.
“We adapted to their game speed and figured out who all of their studs were,” Krail reflected. “Our guys were on their heels a little bit early on, but once we saw that first drive, we knew what we had to do.”
Once Los Gatos had the Live Oak offense all figured out, the Wildcat offense put the pedal to the metal. With just under a minute remaining in the second quarter, Los Gatos had possession of the ball and was already ahead 27-7. With playoff mode activated, the Wildcats had no intention of taking a knee to end the half. Los Gatos started its final drive of the half at its own 26, and immediately started working the ball downfield. With just 11.7 seconds left in the first half, Girvan found Kyle Pinkham over the middle for a 41-yard touchdown pass. A good PAT from Ty Goldsbury extended the Wildcats’ lead to 34-7 going into the half.
The rest of the game went by with Garwood and Gustavenson taking turns rushing for short gains in their respective offensive drives, which ran tons of time off of the clock. Unfortunately for the Acorns, Ojeda, who is actually a converted wide receiver, was relatively ineffective with the passing game. Gustavenson wasn’t enough for Live Oak to turn the game around.
After the game, the Acorns left the field with their heads up. Live Oak head coach Mike Gemo felt that the team should be happy with their extremely solid regular season, no matter what happened in the playoffs.
“We went 9-2. Nobody can take that away from us,” Gemo said after the game. “And, we gave it our all tonight. That’s all that matters.”
Los Gatos will move on to the semifinals which are set for next Friday at 7 pm, and the Wildcats will host the winner of the Sacred Heart Prep-Bellarmine game, which is being played Saturday afternoon.
