Same old problem for Oaks Christian
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For the first time ever, Oaks Christian has the same amount of wins as losses and a lot of that somewhat dubious distinction has to be levied on the Lions’ inability to play to their potential for 48 minutes.
I don’t mean to belittle Venice and RB Curtis McNeal‘s 186-yard performance, but a team as talented as Oaks Christian should have walked away with the big ol’ ‘W’ after taking a 28-9 halftime lead. However, just like they’ve done in every game this year, the Lions suffered a breakdown -- a breakdown that allowed the Gondoliers to jump back into the game and steal a 41-35 victory.
‘We haven’t been able to put a whole game together yet,’ Oaks Christian Coach Bill Redell said. ‘I know we’re younger than we we were last year and maybe that has something to do with it, but, really, there isn’t any excuse for it.’
It’s an ongoing problem that needs to be corrected if Oaks Christian is going to repeat as Northwest Division champion in December.
In the season opener against Lompoc, the Lions should have had a shutout and against Muir they had a 36-0 halftime lead before settling for a 36-20 victory. And then, against St. Bonaventure in Week 3, Oaks Christian fell into a 34-0 hole before losing, 41-33.
‘We’ve got to eliminate the mental mistakes and stay in the game,’ Redell said. ‘We could have -- rather should have -- won those [last two] games.’
- Austin Knoblauch
