Central Conference : Aztecs Say They’re Ready to Play, Then Prove It--La Quinta 41, Sonora 0
After declining an offer to postpone his playoff game with Sonora until Saturday night when field conditions were bound to be better, La Quinta Coach Joe Zeno can sleep well tonight, knowing he made the right decision.
Case in point, his Aztecs rolled to their second straight playoff victory with a 41-0 win over the Raiders in rain-soaked La Habra Stadium Friday night.
Earlier in the day, Zeno was given the opportunity to move the game to Saturday night, but after meeting with the players, he was sure they were ready to go.
“We really felt we were ready to play,” said Zeno, who has led the Aztecs to the school’s first semifinal berth. “The kids told me and also showed me they were ready to play and that the field conditions did not matter to them.”
The rain-drenched field did not seemed to bother the Aztecs on offense, where quarterback Derek Debbs led the way with three touchdown passes, and running back Bart Recktenwald added 114 yards in 9 carries to balance the La Quinta attack.
On defense, the poor conditions played right into Zeno’s plan as the Aztec defense held Sonora to minus 2 total yards.
“The elements really affect the way we played,” Zeno said. “We did several things, like blitzing, which were especially tough to defense because of the conditions.
“But I’m sure it really restricted them on offense. It was not just our defense but the fact that the field did not let them do all the things they wanted to do.”
La Quinta did not waste any time getting on the board as the Aztecs drove 42 yards in 7 plays on their first possession and scored on Debbs’ 3-yard run just five minutes into the game.
The Aztecs also scored on their next two possessions as Recktenwald played a key role in both drives. Recktenwald’s first touchdown came on a third-and-10 play from the Sonora 36, when Debbs found him alone down the sidelines for the touchdown pass.
Recktenwald’s next score came moments later when he burst up the middle for a 70-yard touchdown run making the score 21-0.
The Aztecs scored once more before the half to take a 28-0 lead into the locker room when Debbs connected with Eric Zeno for a 12-yard touchdown pass.
The touchdown was set up three plays earlier when linebacker Mike Zaby intercepted Sonora quarterback Jay Johnson’s pass at the Raider 43-yard line and returned it to the 12 with just over a minute left.
La Quinta added two more scores in the second half and will meet Newport Harbor in the Central Conference semifinals.