The Menlo Knights beat the Monte Vista Christian Mustangs, 42-14, in the first round of CCS playoffs, advancing them to the Central Coastal Section semifinals. Ultimately, junior quarterback Jack Heneghan brought his team to victory, setting up Menlo to take on top-seeded Seaside Friday night for a chance to play for a CCS Division IV title.
Heneghan completed 14 of 18 passes in just the first half, far surpassing his pass completion average from previous games of .653. Heneghan also threw two touchdown passes, insuring that the Knights get a win.
“[Heneghan] is a great player. He has a great understanding of our offense. He has a great understanding of defensive fronts, coverage, what plays are optimum against those," Menlo coach Mark Newton said. "If we’ve got something that isn’t going to adjust on the fly, than he will get us into something better. He’s got great pocket presence. He’s just an outstanding player all around."
Menlo’s offensive team was able to execute almost flawlessly.
“I think we executed well. We ran the ball really nicely,” said Heneghan.
Defensively, the Knights were able to hold Monte Vista Christian completely off the board in the first half, and to only two touchdowns in the game. Despite the loss Mustang senior quarterback Nick Matiasevich had an excellent passing game, throwing a 30-yard touchdown pass to David Hightower to conclude the game.
“We knew that they were dangerous, they could throw the ball down the field and spread out," Newton said. "Our guys did a great job on defense dealing with the rush lanes and the angles, so we were happy with that."
“They are a 5-seed playoff team. So they are nothing to take lightly,” said Heneghan.
Late in the game, several young players ran onto the field to help finish the game. Second-string quarterback and sophomore Jack Lambert stepped into Heneghan’s big shoes. Only completing one pass and throwing an interception, the rest of the offense was still able to excel.
“We played a lot of sophomores. We are trying to keep some guys healthy that are a little banged up for next week," Newton said. "They stepped up and did a great job. We brought up some sophomores that can really help us in the playoffs.”
Menlo played an excellent football game against a strong team, allowing new and young players to join the competition. However, they lightened up against Mustangs in the second half.
“I think we have to work on finishing the whole game," Heneghan said. "We have to continue to execute in the first half and finish through the rest of the game."
After winning the quarterfinals of CCS, the Menlo Knights will play the Seaside Spartans, while the Mustangs will hang up their cleats for the year.
“Seaside is a great football team. They’ve got tremendous athletes and a lot of good players in different spots," Newton said. "Offensively, this year we’ve been able to be effective against every team we’ve played. We’ve been really solid. If we play our game we can have a really competitive game against a great football team."
