Gritty road effort gets team prepared for league opener
There are times on a football field when a hard-fought loss is far more inspirational than a sloppy win.
The Eagles had one of those games in a Saturday, Sept. 8 road trip to Montgomery, a date that was a late addition due to the cancellation of the Healdsburg game last month.
Montgomery, a much bigger school that resides in the North Bay League, provided an excellent litmus test for a Cloverdale team with playoff aspirations. The Eagles showed heart and grit, passing the test with flying colors in a 17-7 loss.
The setback was the first for Cloverdale after opening the season with two straight wins.
“I was very proud of our guys, they played hard against a very good and athletic team,” CHS head coach Greg Alexander said. “We did a great job of holding their receivers and limiting big plays. Offensively, we were effective enough and moved the ball. We had our chances but could not overcome self-inflicted wounds.”
The strong effort gives Cloverdale momentum heading into the NCL 1 opener this Friday, Sept. 14 when it entertains Fort Bragg. Kickoff times for the JV and varsity games are 5 and 7:30 p.m.
“Fort Bragg is very well coached, executes well and should be a good challenge for us,” Alexander noted. “We need to be solid in our assignments and have good eye discipline on defense. Our guys are very excited to get to league play.”
Eagles impressive in defeat
The Eagles had nothing to hang their heads about in their Sept. 8 trip to Montgomery, making the Vikings earn every bit of real estate on the night. Montgomery drew first blood in the opening period on an 11-yard field goal, but Cloverdale quarterback Shayne Turner answered with a good drive culminating in a touchdown run from Jone Wesele to lead 7-3 at the end of one.
The Vikings, who have a pair of highly touted receivers, took a lead they would not relinquish in the second quarter with a scoring pass from quarterback Cole Hallin to BJ Johnson for a 10-7 edge at the break. Montgomery added another touchdown pass to Gavin Lemos in the third quarter en route to a 17-7 win.
Turner led the Eagle’s attack with 4 completions on 13 pass attempts for 48 yards and one interception. Also turning in solid offensive efforts were running back Wesele (19-71 yards rushing, TD), all-purpose back Cesar Buenrostro (2-62 yards rushing, 3-43 yards receiving), Chaz Mrkvicka (1-2 yards rushing), Leo Acevedo (1-5 yards receiving). Cloverdale had 205 total yards.
Of particular note was the big-play capability of Buenrostro, who had several spectacular plays rushing, receiving and on kick returns.
“Cesar was unbelievable,” Alexander said. “He made huge runs and a had a big kick return.”
