The week that was in Ventura County
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With the playoffs right around the corner, there were several impressive performances turned in on the football field this week, and the timing for postseason hopefuls couldn’t have been better considering the Southern Section pairings will be released Sunday. So without further delay, let’s take a quick look at who left the biggest impression on the powers that be.
Status quo: St. Bonaventure has been the front-runner in both the Channel League and Northern Division races the entire season and the Seraphs’ 55-3 victory over Buena on Friday didn’t tarnish their reputation one bit. Now the fun begins. Hart, Saugus and, perhaps, Newbury Park could prove to be tests in the playoffs, though I have a funny feeling that Darrell Scott & Co. will prevail in the end. St. Bonnie is just too tough.
What do I know... If someone would’ve told me at the beginning of the season that Nordhoff was going to win a share of the Tri-Valley League title and earn the league’s top seeding for the Northwest Division playoffs, I would’ve laughed. There was no way, no how. But sure enough, the Rangers accomplished the unthinkable after defeating Grace Brethren, 31-6, in the regular-season finale. However, Oaks Christian and Oak Park loom in the distance and I imagine those two will be in the championship game as Nordhoff watches from the sidelines.
Another day, another record: I told you about Cierre Wood a couple of weeks ago and the highly touted junior was at it again for Santa Clara in a 40-3 victory over Villanova that clinched the Frontier League title, and quite possibly the top seeding in the Mid-Valley Division. He rushed for 181 yards and a pair of scores, giving him 52 for his career and tying him with Kwinn Knight for first place on the Saints’ all-time touchdown list.
Turnaround is fair play: Things didn’t look good for Oxnard when it opened the season with back-to back-losses, but the setbacks are merely an afterthought now. With a 63-10 victory over Pacifica, the Yellowjackets won their eighth consecutive game, the longest current streak in the county, to secure the Pacific View League title. Bad news is the Northern Division is loaded with good teams so things won’t be easy moving forward.
--Sean Ceglinsky, guest blogger
-- Image from www.calarchives4u.com