SANTA CRUZ — Jorge Uribe has never played this version of football before. The Gonzales High seniors’ craft is soccer, having scored 28 goals last year in helping the program to a Central Coast Section Division IV title.
Learning the game on the fly like eight other seniors, Uribe has evolved into a dependable receiver, catching a pair of touchdown passes Friday in the Spartans 29-18 win over host Harbor.
“Jorge is an amazing soccer player,” Gonzales coach Eddy Ramirez said. “But he’s never played football before. He’s still learning the game, as is our quarterback (Jordan Askew), who had never played the position before.”
Since dropping its first four games, in which it went 15 quarters without a point, Gonzales has won three of its last four games to improve to 3-5 overall and 3-2 in the Santa Lucia Division.
“We’re not just a very young team, but very inexperienced,” Ramirez said. “The seniors we have, most came out for the first time this year. What you’re seeing is it’s starting to click.”
Askew accounted for three touchdowns for the Spartans, connecting with Uribe on scoring strikes of 33 and 8 yards, while adding a 9-yard touchdown run to secure the win.
“Jordan was our safety when the season started,” Ramirez said. “We needed a quarterback, so he said I’ll try. He was learning the position and playbook on the fly.”
Over the last two games, Askew has tossed four touchdown passes, including a game-winner last week against Marina to Uribe. Jaden Uribe added a touchdown run for Gonzales, while Luis Cabada kicked a 25-yard field goal.
The Spartans, who close the season hosting Santa Lucia Division champion Santa Cruz next Friday, have been hit hard by injuries, as Ramirez suited up just 20 players.
“It’s been tough. But this group fights,” Ramirez said. “We’ve dealt with a lot of adversity. Honestly, I think playing on turf has been the cause of a lot of our soft tissue injuries. But seeing the dynamics of these kids get tighter is what sticks out to me.”
Gonzales became the latest school in the county to install a turf field after having a grass field. Six of its eight games this season were played on a synthetic surface.
“We have some building blocks for next year,” Ramirez said. “If we can get into the weight room in the off-season, we could build something exciting for the future. It’s a good group of kids to build around.”
Soledad 28, Pacific Grove 6: While the Aztecs would love to have a couple of games back from the first half of the season, Pacific Grove wishes it could recreate the magic from the first half of the year.
The two teams are going in opposite directions as Soledad sent the Breakers to their fourth straight loss, ending any hopes of a postseason berth.
“The mission after last week’s loss was to finish strong,” Soledad coach Eric Rodriguez said. “We are a young team. Wins like this carry a lot of momentum into the following season.”
Soledad’s 3-6 record could easily be 6-3, as it has failed to hold leads in the second half in losses to Stevenson, Scotts Valley and Monte Vista, three programs that are chasing playoff spots.
“If we could have pulled out those wins, we could be talking about the playoffs,” Rodriguez said. “We only have nine seniors. We’re playing for pride right now.”
A pick six from Erick Sandoval were the only points Soledad would score in the first half. The second half belonged to the offense, as DJ Valenzuela accounted for two touchdowns, hitting Daniel Garcia on a 36-yard scoring strike.
Gio Gallegos added a 23-yard touchdown run for Soledad, who also has a win this year against Mission Division North leader San Lorenzo Valley. Garcia and defensive tackle Xavier Ovalle helped shut down Pacific Grove’s offense in the second half.
The Breakers, who opened the season 4-1 before dropping their last four games, got to within a point at halftime on a Ersi Kullolli touchdown pass to Andrew Nimri.
Pacific Grove will limp into their season finale, looking to snap an 11-game losing streak to Carmel next Saturday in ‘The Shoe’ game. During its four-game skid, it has been outscored 137-20.
Scotts Valley 31, North County 13: Having lost five more players in the first half to injuries, Juan Cuevas considered calling the game for the Condors — even though the game was still in doubt.
“The health and safety of our kids was on my mind,” the Condors head coach said. “Some of these kids never came off the field. The kids refused to let me call the game.”
Down 21-7 at the half, Cuevas asked for a running clock in the second half, which was turned down as North County dropped its seventh straight game.
“I didn’t know what else to do,” Cuevas said. “I had to move one of my linebackers to quarterback, my tight end to running back. I don’t have a lot of options left. The kids that are left are fighters.”
That was evident in the first half when receiver turned running back Jacob Silva capped a Condors drive with a 15-yard touchdown run, tying the game at seven.
“I’m thinking lets do this,” Cuevas said. “I was pumped with the effort. Then Silva gets run into on the sidelines and gets hurt. That’s our season in a nutshell.”
Scotts Valley, which is fighting for the No. 2 spot in the Mission Division North at 3-1, ran off 24 straight points to build a 31-7 lead before tight end DJ Ramos plowed in for a touchdown late in the game for North County.
“I put two packages out there in the second half,” Cuevas said. “We lost two more kids. I put DJ back there and gave him a couple of carries. Our numbers are in the low 20’s. But the kids that can get on the field, will not quit.”
After winning just three games last year, the Falcons have doubled their win total this year at 7-2 overall. They will close the season next week against St. Francis in what will decide the second seed out of the Mission Division North.
