Grant grows up in game for the ages
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Was that a football game Grant played against Verdugo Hills last Friday or was it a revelation?
Was that wondrous 55-52, four-overtime victory claimed by the Lancers a bone thrown to them by fate or was it a lifeline?
Coach Miguel Gonzalez is, of course, hoping for the latter. The Lancers struggled mightily in their nonleague games, losing all four while getting outscored, 145-28. They ended the four-game skid two weeks ago with a 19-0 win over Van Nuys. But when the Lancers entered the fourth quarter of the Verdugo Hills game trailing 28-14, it appeared Grant had regressed to its ugly ways.
Yet something changed.
The heavens didn’t open up with angels singing in the background. Genies didn’t start popping out of Gatorade bottles. But somehow, Grant tied the game and, four overtimes later, pulled out a stunning victory against the two-time defending Sunset Six League champions.
Perhaps quarterback Armando Orozco, throwing for six touchdowns and running for two more, had something to do with it.
‘We finally believe we can get it done,’ Gonzalez said. ‘Maybe we’re not as bad as we seem on paper.’
The Grant victory snapped Verdugo Hills’ 12-game league winning streak. And the Lancers, who haven’t won a league title since 2003, currently find themselves tied with North Hollywood for first in the league.
‘Going 0-4 in the [nonleague schedule] and doing as poorly as we did, we were pretty down,’ Gonzalez said. ‘This has been a big turnaround. Finally, we believe.’
- Mike Terry