Heritage’s Angelo Serena (6) uses a stiff arm to break the tackle of the San Jacinto defender during the game at Heritage High School. Valley News/Action Captures Media Group
— SOUTHWEST RIVCO — With Zero Week out of the way, last week, also known as Week One, took place starting Thursday, Aug. 25, around the Southwest Riverside County region for prep football teams. Scores for Week One high school football games involving local teams inside our coverage area were reported as follows:
8/25 (Thursday)
San Jacinto – 61, Heritage – 28
8/26 (Friday)
Vista Murrieta – 37, Murrieta Mesa – 14
Murrieta Valley – 52, Great Oak – 14
Tesoro – 14, Chaparral – 10
Temecula Valley – 35, Elsinore – 7
Eisenhower – 40, Temescal Canyon – 27
Rancho Christian – 43, San Bernardino – 8
Liberty – 42, AB Miller – 0
Tahquitz – 34, Lakeside – 13
Paloma Valley – 42, Moreno Valley – 20
California Lutheran – 12, Calvin Christian – 6
8/27 (Saturday)
Pacifica – 41, Linfield Christian – 22
Santa Rosa – 54, Nuview Bridge – 12
Editor’s notes from last week start at the all-new Liberty High School in Menifee, where the Bisons trampled over A.B. Miller (Fontana) en route to their first-ever home game win 42-0. This is the school’s first season as a varsity program, touting a freshman through junior roster since the school currently does not house seniors yet. The first graduating class will be in 2024.
A.B. Miller controlled the ball for the first eight minutes of the game, before it turned into the Bison show. On their first play of the game, in their first-ever home game, at their brand-new campus, running back Anthony Ruelas took the ball 90 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown. On their next possession, and second-ever play on their field, wide receiver Andre Skelton took the ball down the right side again, this time for a 60-yard score. Three plays into their third possession, Skelton did it again, this time catching a pass from Liberty quarterback Troy Dulyn and taking it 17 yards for the touchdown. By halftime, it was 21-0, and the Bisons wouldn’t stop there, holding A.B. Miller scoreless the entire game.
Other notes include the return of a Bachmeier at QB for Murrieta Valley and a win for Temecula Valley over Elsinore, keeping the perpetual trophy in their grasp for another year.
You read that right, a Bachmeier returns to run the Nighthawk offense for the first time since Hank Bachmeier (current Boise State QB) led Murrieta Valley between the years of 2016 to 2019, which included multiple playoff berths and a Southwestern League title in 2016 as a sophomore. This new Bachmeier is named Bear, starting as a sophomore as well, and gets the privilege of throwing to another of his older brothers this season, Tiger, a senior that is no stranger to the playoffs, and achieving high marks when postseason awards get handed out.
In their first game of the season, in the new Big West Division (Great Oak – Lower, Murrieta Valley – Upper), the two brothers were nothing short of amazing as they helped take down Great Oak 52-14. Bear threw for 237 yards, completing 16 of 17 passes with one touchdown in the air to Tiger and one on the ground that he ran himself from a few yards out. Tiger had 197 receiving yards on the night and Travis Karg and Asa Chatman both had a pair of rushing touchdowns each. Karg had 77 yards on the ground while Chatman had 112. Great Oak got two scores in the first half from the arm of Cole Vazquez, who had 131 passing yards in the game but that would be all she wrote with an impeccable run defensively as well from the home team Nighthawks.
As for the perpetual trophy, Temecula Valley has taken claim again and kept it for six straight seasons, kind of. With no game being played in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, their 35-7 trouncing of the Tigers last Friday night helps keep it the paws of the Golden Bears for another season. Elsinore last defeated Temecula Valley, 28-0, in that 2016 season, and at the time it was the Tigers’ fifth win of the six games played in the series between two of the oldest schools in Southwest Riverside County. Now, in 2022, the series is knotted up at five wins a piece between them, which should make for even more great energy next season.
Golden Bear players Jake Sinz and Bryce Dewald were selected as the Temecula Valley players of the game. Dewald, at QB, threw for 157 yards, completing 8 of 9 passes, with three touchdowns, running in another himself with his 3o rushing yards, and Sinz, who led the Golden Bears on defense with 17 total tackles, 2 QB sacks, and a fumble recovery.
Other Week One wins came from Vista Murrieta, Paloma Valley, Rancho Christian, California Lutheran, Linfield Christian and Santa Rosa Academy.
This season the Valley News Sports Department will be focusing on the schools and sports inside a limited coverage area due to print space and manpower. Those schools include Great Oak, Temecula Valley, Chaparral, Murrieta Valley, Murrieta Mesa, Vista Murrieta, Linfield Christian, Rancho Christian, Elsinore, Paloma Valley, Liberty, St. Jeanne de Lestonnac, Heritage, Temecula Prep, Hamilton (Anza), Cornerstone Christian, Temescal Canyon, Lakeside and the River Springs Charter Schools (no football programs).
*All stats, schedules, photos and scores are supplied by local high school athletic directors, MaxPreps, CIF-SS offices, contributing writers/photographers and countless fans of the games via social media. Is your team’s score missing? Let us know if your school is inside our coverage area and would like to be mentioned.
JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com.
