KENTFIELD, Calif. – Host Marin Catholic came into Saturday afternoon’s matchup with James Logan as a solid favorite, and despite a few mistakes and more penalties than the coaching staff wanted to see, the Wildcats showed why they’re No. 3 in the Prep2Prep North Coast Section rankings with a 42-12 victory over No. 16 James Logan.
“It was a little sloppy today but I’m proud of the effort even with some mistakes and too many penalties,” Marin Catholic head coach Mazi Moayed told the team after the game. “We need to do the basics a little better.”
“Those kids were tough. James Logan is tough, they’re a good team,” Moayed continued. “We had some errors and that made the game closer than the score, but that’s football.”
At times he looked a little shaky, and at times he was pinpoint, but in his second start after missing two games before being declared eligible after transferring from San Marin, senior quarterback Joey Cook was 22 of 37 passing for 230 yards and three touchdowns. Cook completed his first five passes and finished the game with nine straight completions.
“For me personally there are a lot of small adjustments I can make to help the team out,” Cook said. “I feel I have a good grasp of the offense, but I feel I definitely need to get better with that.”
All three of Cook’s TD passes went to Matt Greco. The senior wide receiver had 11 catches for 123 yards. He also ran the end around three times for an additional 34 yards.
Greco admitted it was a career game for him but showed humility in his answers.
“Yes, thank you, it was a career game, but it all starts with the line,” Greco said. “If they don’t block we can’t make these big plays. It’s a team effort all the time.”
“I’m never satisfied with my game and there’s always something to improve,” Greco continued. “I’m happy with how we played and we can enjoy that for the rest of the day, but it was a sloppy game by us and we have a lot to improve on.”
For Charles Williams it was like another day at the office. Like Greco, the junior running back had three TDs, only his came by way of the run. Williams finished with 23 carries for 125 yards.
A second Wildcats receiver, senior JR Bosch, also had a solid outing, catching six passes for 60 yards.
The Marin Catholic defense also made a statement. They sacked Logan quarterback Thomas Miller three times with junior defensive end Marion Crocitto getting two of the sacks, plus he had another tackle for a loss. They also intercepted Williams twice with one by senior Drew Ramos, plus he had a tackle for a loss, and the other pick was by junior Greer Arthur.
Marin Catholic (4-0) took the opening kickoff and went 70 yards in seven plays, culminating in a 1-yard plunge by Williams that gave the Wildcats a 6-0 lead it never relinquished.
The Wildcats defense limited the first Logan drive to four plays and when their ensuing drive stalled, junior kicker Charles Lewis booted home a 37-yard field goal to make it 9-0 Marin Catholic after one quarter.
Greco got his first TD reception on a 31-yard pass from Cook midway through the second quarter to extend the lead to 16-0, and that’s the way the first half ended.
Marin Catholic took the second half kickoff but went nowhere. After a punt, the Colts got the ball on their own 37 and mounted their best drive of the game, going 63 yards in eight plays capped off by a 14-yard pass from Williams to Jonathan Watts. That cut the lead to 16-6 and the Colts looked like they had some life.
Marin Catholic recovered the ensuing onside kick but their drive stalled, and the next Logan possession was ended with a sack by senior Trent Carrade.
A 9-yard punt gave the ball to Marin Catholic at the Logan 30 and three plays later Cook and Greco connected a second time on a 12-yard TD pass and it was 22-6 Wildcats.
A Ramos interception at the Logan 30 ended the third quarter and Marin Catholic pounced on the opportunity when after four plays Williams scored on a 3-yard run to make it 28-6 Marin Catholic.
The Wildcats tried a squib on the kickoff and recovered it at the Logan 24. Three plays later Williams danced down the left sideline and vaulted into the end zone for a game-sealing 35-6 lead with 9:24 left.
The Colts pulled a touchdown back when Williams found senior wide receiver Jack Morton all alone and hit him for a 73-yard score that cut it to 35-12.
Marin Catholic registered the final tally when Greco scored his third touchdown on an 11-yard pass from Cook in which he broke free from three defenders and spun into the end zone.
“He’s a playmaker and a tough cookie,” said Moayed of Greco.
Logan (2-2) got 160 yards passing and the two TDs from Miller.
Next up for Logan is visiting No. 8 Heritage (4-0) and the leading rusher in the NCS, Fresno State-committed Devon Rivers.
Marin Catholic travels to Antioch. The 1-3 Panthers were No. 20 in the last NCS rankings and are coming off a heartbreaking 36-35 home loss to No. 10 California.
