PREP FOOTBALL / Saturday Pullout : Woodbridge Overcomes Key Injuries

Missing four defensive starters, Woodbridge shuffled its roster and came up with a big effort, capitalizing on three turnovers to defeat Pacifica, 37-20, Friday night at Bolsa Grande High School.

Woodbridge dominated the game, giving up only seven points and 70 yards of offense in the first half. Sixty-seven of those yards were credited to Mariner running back Tommy Summers, who finished the game with 27 carries and 136 yards.

“No way he would have gotten that many if all of us played,” injured Warrior linebacker Ian Dominelli said. Dominelli is considered one of the top defensive players in the county and is out of action recovering from a wrist injury. Also missing were defensive end Justin Dufour, defensive tackle Tim Herr and defensive tackle Ryan Kellett.

Senior Theo Wakefield picked up the slack. Wakefield ran back an interception 53 yards to Pacifica’s four-yard line to begin the second half, resulting in a touchdown run by Gavin Crew and a 31-7 lead.

Two possessions later, Wakefield ran 61 yards from scrimmage for a touchdown and 37-14 advantage. Wakefield also was in on two quarterback sacks and harassed Mariner quarterback Ryan Johansen all night.

“Theo was the heart and soul of this team tonight,” Coach Rick Gibson said. “Our whole defense came through big-time.”

Things looked bad for Pacifica right from the start when Ricky Jenkins returned the opening kickoff 45 yards. The Warriors were stopped by an interception, but on their next possession, Jenkins got the ball again and scored on a 15-yard run with 4 minutes, 45 seconds remaining in the first.

Four minutes later, Woodbridge went up, 14-0, on a 63-yard pass play from Casey Harris to Crew. Senior Nate Perrizo gave the Warriors a 24-0 lead when he returned a Pacifica punt 60 yards with 7:11 remaining in the half.