Santa Fe Christian Wins Title

He stood on the sidelines with a jacket to shield the cold and an expression that fit that mood.

Glum.

A knee injury kept star running back Rashaan Salaam from playing for La Jolla Country Day (9-1) in the Eight-Man championship game Saturday night at Mira Mesa High. His teammates, of course, played on without him. And, for that matter, they didn’t play half bad.

But half bad wasn’t good enough against great. And Santa Fe Christian was great. The result was a 56-36 victory, which broke La Jolla Country Day’s 19-game winning streak. It also made up nicely for the Torres’ victory against Santa Fe Christian (9-1) earlier this season.

“We were definitely ready for this game,” said Santa Fe Christian quarterback Mark Loeffler, who completed 11 of 15 passes for 326 yards and four touchdowns. “We knew that we could beat them. They beat us last time, and we felt we should have won the game.”

La Jolla Country Day took a 14-0 lead, scoring on its first two possessions. The Eagles bounced back in the second quarter, taking a 21-17 lead when Loeffler hooked up with Deric Shires for a 65-yard touchdown pass. Shires was open most of the game and finished with seven catches for 244 yards and three touchdowns.

The last few minutes of the second quarter were a little crazy. In the span of 1:26, 32 points was scored, including a field goal, four touchdowns, three PATs and a two-point conversion. By halftime, Santa Fe Christian had a 35-24 lead and the Eagles were never in trouble again. Any chance the defending champion Torres had of making a comeback ended with 7:55 to play when Shires intercepted a Daniel Sparling pass and the Eagles took over at La Jolla’s 35.

Afterward, La Jolla Country Day Coach Rick Woods could only speculate what might have happened if Salaam had been available.

“I feel bad for him and for the team,” Woods said. “His ability is a big part of this team without a doubt. We were prepared to play without him. We thought we could come out here and field a team that was good enough to win without him.

“Up until yesterday it looked like there was a chance he was going to be out there. Then (the doctor) took a look on Friday and thought it best if he didn’t play.”

Salaam said his doctor put it in simple terms, telling him if he was his son he wouldn’t let him play. Deciding it wasn’t worth risking a bright athletic future for one game, Salaam took the advice and became a spectator. It wasn’t easy.

“It was really tough,” he said. “But they tried their hardest. You can’t ask for anything more.”

Sparling finished 18 of 36 for 404 yards and five touchdowns. He also through four interceptions, three in the second half.