Faith Baptist to Play for 8-Man Title

Faith Baptist High will be making an appearance in the Southern Section Eight-Man Large Division football final for the fourth time in the past eight years when it plays host to Hesperia Christian today at 1:30 p.m.

In its season opener, Faith Baptist (9-0) bombed Hesperia Christian, 46-0, in a game that was called at halftime because of the 45-point rule. However, Hesperia Christian (7-3), which lost its first three games, has upset second-seeded Brentwood and third-seeded Templeton to reach the final.

Top-seeded Faith Baptist has rolled through the playoffs, beating Webb, 48-22, in the first round and Flintridge Prep, 44-6, in the semifinals. The Contenders won the eight-man championship in 1984 and were runners-up in 1985 and 1990.

Faith Baptist is led on offense by junior tailback James DeCarriere and split end Alex Estrada. DeCarriere carried 63 times for 566 yards in seven regular-season games.

Freshman Judd Granzow has been a capable replacement at quarterback for injured senior Darren Wyre. Wyre, who had passed for 17 touchdowns, suffered a broken wrist in midseason.

Linebacker Shane Montoya and lineman Alex Banuelos lead the Faith Baptist defense.