November 20, 2010
In Week 2 of the regular season, Palo Alto defeated Mitty 20-7. Like the earlier meeting, the CCS Open opening round playoff was played in Palo Alto with the same result as the NCP No. 4 Vikings defeated the No. 18 Monarchs 13-10. A small consolation for Mitty: the latter game was more competitive with a tense ending.
The game was played in a constant drizzle. As a result, the game was not as crisp as the regular season matchup.
The first quarter was a scoreless one. The highlight was Mitty's Michael Bourey recovering a fumble on the sack of Viking quarterback, Christoph Bono. The Monarchs also had two key punts downed inside the Viking 5 yard line.
The second quarter had the Monarchs intercepting Bono and returning the ball to the Viking 5 yard line. The Monarchs went backwards to the 24 yard line. They decided to go for it on fourth and goal with Cal-commit quarterback Kyle Boehm running right and breaking a few tackles for the 24 yard touchdown run.
At the end of the quarter, the Vikings recovered a fumble at the Viking 47 yard line with 1:43 left. A few plays later had Bono running 46 yards for a touchdown but the PAT snap was botched to end the half 7-6 in favor of Mitty.
The third quarter like the first quarter was scoreless. The quarter saw several fumbles that were recovered by the offense. Palo Alto had a failed fake punt run at the end of the quarter.
Mitty was able to start the fourth quarter by driving the ball deep into Viking territory. Kicker Cameron Vaca was able to hit a 31 yard field goal to give the Monarchs a 10-6 lead.
Viking Maurice Williams took the kickoff 44 yards to give Palo Alto good field position. Mitty JD Carrera intercepted the next pass at the Mitty 19 but had to punt after one first down.
Palo Alto had 5:33 left for the winning drive. Running back Dre Hill had a big 20 yard run. Bono made a few key throws to receiver Davante Adams. The Vikings had a first and ten at the Mitty 11 yard line with 1:30 left. Palo Alto had a 5 yard run on first down but lost 3 yards on a second down run and Bono was sacked at the Mitty 21 on third down. With less than a minute and on fourth and 21, Bono was able to hit Adams on a go pattern for the winning score.
Notes
How this game was won: Palo Alto was able to persevere and was able to battle through the weather, overcome four turnovers, and had its defense limit the Mitty scoring opportunities.
Turning Point: Palo Alto's last drive was the best sustained offensive drive of the game. Palo Alto was able to convert on key third downs. And when they were within the Mitty 10 yard line, the Vikings were able to convert on that fourth and 21 for the winning touchdown pass.
Weather factor: The rain limited the offenses. Boehm completed one pass out of seven attempts while Bono had three interceptions.
Offensive highlights: both quarterbacks had a long rushing touchdown while Bono accounted for the winning throw. Mitty Rocky Meszaros who missed the first game due to injury had 26 yards on 12 rushes. He is in contact with Cal Poly, North Dakota, and Portland State. Viking Dre Hill had 11 rushes for 81 yards.
Defensive highlights: Both defenses took advantage of the wet weather to create many turnovers and punting situations.
Mitty season summary: Coach Haniger was proud of his seniors even in defeat. He felt that he had a good group of leaders. Mitty started the season slow but came on strong late. The Monarchs were able to win quite a few nail-biters and comeback victories. But playing on the edge caught up to them on Friday night. Incidentally, the Monarch side felt that the game winning catch may have been juggled.
What is next for Palo Alto: Stanford-commit Kevin Anderson summed it best about the next game against Bellarmine - the Vikings have revenge on their mind based on what happened last year. Coach Hansen considers Bellarmine to play a different style. He expects a challenge from the Bells. If rainy weather happens in that game, it may be a big advantage for the Bellarmine run-oriented offense. Regardless, Palo Alto stays undefeated and keep hopes alive for a run at state.
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