PREP FOOTBALL ROUNDUP : Nordhoff Wins Share of 1st Title Since 1966

Nordhoff High clinched a share of its first league championship since 1966 as the Rangers forced five turnovers in a 37-22 Frontier League win over Santa Clara on Saturday afternoon at Rio Mesa High.

Adam Blundell and Nacho Vega each scored a pair of touchdowns for Nordhoff (6-3, 3-0 in league play). Blundell, a junior wide receiver and running back, gave Nordhoff a 7-0 lead in the first quarter when he hauled in a 47-yard pass from Steve Saum. Blundell also capped a 20-point Ranger outburst in the third period by turning a counter play into a 40-yard touchdown run that made the score 30-8.

Vega began the third-quarter explosion with a four-yard run and finished Nordhoff’s scoring on a three-yard burst to give the Rangers a 37-16 lead with 3 minutes 41 seconds to play.

The victory clinched a tie for the league title and assured Nordhoff of the Frontier League’s No. 1 seeding in the Southern Section Division VIII playoffs. “We’ve carried a big burden (of losing) at Nordhoff,” Coach Cliff Farrar said. “It’s a relief to finally win.”