A dominant defensive performance coupled with another
highlight-reel offensive showing, including running back Brandon
Boyd’s four touchdowns, sparked a 48-13 Gilroy High football team
win over Alvarez High School on homecoming Friday night.
By Josiah Rodriguez – Dispatch correspondent
A dominant defensive performance coupled with another highlight-reel offensive showing, including running back Brandon Boyd’s four touchdowns, sparked a 48-13 Gilroy High football team win over Alvarez High School on homecoming Friday night.
“This is the first night that I have seen complete Mustang football,” said GHS head coach Steven Lo. “That is why we performed the way we did. Every single play we were focused and had our plan in place. We knew exactly what we were going to do on every play, and we did it.”
The Mustangs defense one-upped their performance of last week’s 54-28 win over North Salinas by allowing just 13 points to the Eagles, the fewest GHS has allowed all season. The offense continued to put up gaudy numbers, totaling 532 total yards.
Boyd was able to run wild over the Eagles’ defense behind a strong offensive line for the Mustangs. Boyd’s first touchdown, a 34-yard sprint to the end zone with 10:37 in the second quarter, was set up by a booming block by offensive lineman Jose Lara. Lara and Jonathan Aguilar opened the floodgates for Boyd to run for 171 yards on 23 rushes and four touchdowns.
“I trust him (Lara), he’s a good lineman, but I trust all of them,” Boyd said. “We have the offense, we just needed the defense, and I think we have it now.”
Mustangs senior quarterback Niko Fortino compiled another efficient evening (23-32 378 yards 4 TDs)and relied on his favorite target of the night, and virtually all season,senior wide receiver Jourdan Soares to produce big plays. The 6-foot-2 Soares pulled in six catches for 137 yards and three touchdowns, the biggest coming on an 81-yard bomb midway through the third quarter.
“It’s all Niko there,” Soares said. “I give all the credit to Niko. It’s just my job to go up and get the ball, but he’s the one avoiding all the big defensive linemen.”
The Mustangs’ defense, which allowed the offense to start in its own territory on three occasions, forced a missed field goal in the first quarter and a blocked punt in the fourth.
“We’ve been working hard during practice,” said Jose Betancourt, who led the Mustangs’ defense with 12 tackles. “We added some new things to our defense because some of our stuff wasn’t working.”
Alvarez’s lone offensive star was running back Manuel Melano, who rushed for 169 yards on 23 carries. His biggest run was a 66-yarder where he broke free past a falling Gilroy defender into the end zone with 3:39 left in the third quarter to slightly narrow the Mustangs lead to 41-13.
“I think for the first time all year, we asserted ourselves on our opponent,” said Mustangs’ defensive coordinator Zach Hewett. “Seven of those points are on us because we got greedy on offense, so really, our defense only gave up seven points.”
