Prep Football: Week Four scores and game notes from around the area

It was one of those David vs. Goliath weeks on the local prep football scene, except most of the Goliaths went unphased, especially in the Big West. It was also a week when many of the smaller school teams played some of their most competitive football yet. While there have been five weeks of competition, the schedule notes this past week as Week Four of the prep football season due to Zero Week games. This upcoming week will be played primarily by teams that did not utilize a Zero Week, or took a bye week early on, but let’s not get too far ahead.

Week Four action took place starting Thursday, Sept. 14, around the southwest Riverside County region, with games concluding Saturday, Sept. 16. Scores, along with certain game notes for Week Four high school football games involving local teams inside our coverage area, were reported as follows:

THURSDAY 9/14

Nonleague

Canyon Springs (3-2) – 14, Heritage (0-5) – 12

Tri-City Christian (3-1) – 27, Hamilton (0-5) – 14

Murrieta Valley (3-1) – 48, King (2-2) – 24

• Game notes: Trying to prove their weight as a top team in the Big West Upper Division, it was the Bear Bachmeier show last Thursday night. Bachemeier was on fire for the Nighthawks when they went up against a top contender in the Big West Lower Division, King High School. Completing 19 of his 23 passes for 228 yards, Bachmeier connected with four different receivers for five TDs on the night. Brandon Gilbert was the favored target with his two scores, and 76 yards receiving. Asa Chatman and Dorian Hoze covered the ground attack for Murrieta Valley, each scoring one TD apiece, with over 150 yards between the two. Isaiah Ayers led the Nighthawks defense with nine tackles while Santana Letua got one QB sack and had six tackles on the night.

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West Valley (4-1) – 36, Miller (2-3) – 6

• Game notes: West Valley’s Jason Ramirez ran for three touchdowns and had a touchdown pass to lead the Mustangs (4-1) to a nonleague victory. Drew-Sene Amisone led the rushing attack with 126 yards and a touchdown.

Xavier Prep (3-1) – 24, Rancho Christian (4-1) – 21

• Game notes: Rancho Christian dropped their first game of the season, falling to Xavier Prep in the final minutes of their non-conference game Thursday, Sept. 14. The Saints scored 17 points in the fourth quarter, capitalizing on an interception and a fumble recovery, both of which led to scores. Eagles QB Blake Nadler threw for 171 yards, connecting with Jonathan Alexander for two TDs on the night, but also had two turnovers by way of interceptions. Fausto Atilano led Rancho Christian with 33 yards on the ground (7 carries), and 68 yards receiving (5 catches).

Temescal Canyon (3-1) – 22, Lakeside (0-5) – 21

• Game notes: In a tight game, Marley Escobar scored on a 20-yard run in the closing minutes of the game to lift the Temescal Canyon Titans (2-2) to their final nonleague win of the season. Noah Morgan ran for 101 yards and a touchdown, while Louis Alvis threw a touchdown pass and also ran for 81 yards. The high point for the Titans came when they recovered an onside kick to set up the final touchdown.

FRIDAY 9/15

Manzanita League

California Military Institute (2-2) – 22, San Jacinto Valley Academy (0-3) – 11

• Game notes: Manuel Velasquez ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns as the Roughriders (2-2) won their Manzanita League opener over SJVA.

Nonleague

Beaumont (5-0) – 43, Murrieta Mesa (0-5) – 14

Bloomington (4-0) – 32, Citrus Hill (1-4) – 14

Cornerstone Christian (3-1) – 47, Horizon Prep (0-3) – 6 (8-man)

• Game notes: Cornerstone Christian’s Devin Jarrett threw for 201 yards and four touchdowns as the Crusaders (3-1) took down Horizon Prep in a nonleague bout. Matthew Cole Contreras caught two of those touchdowns from Jarrett, and Matthew Huffman added 86 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

Linfield Christian (3-2) – 22, Norwalk (2-2) – 20

• Game notes: Linfield Christian’s Micah Little rushed for a pair of touchdowns as the Lions (3-2) erased an early double-digit deficit to beat Norwalk. A Thomas Paschal rushing TD in the third quarter helped give Linfield Christian a 19-14 lead.

Diamond Bar (3-2) – 33, Paloma Valley (3-2) – 20

• Game note: Keegan Kelley ran for 130 yards and a touchdown to lead Paloma Valley (3-2).

Eisenhower (5-0) – 14, Elsinore (2-3) – 9

• Game notes: The Elsinore Tigers could not find a way to contain Dashaun Benton, who was a special teams ninja for Eisenhower. From the opening kickoff to the fake punt first down run in the fourth quarter, Elsinore fell 14-9 in a nonleague loss last Friday Night. The Eagles took a 14-9 lead in the second quarter, and from there, neither team scored again nor came within their opponent’s red zone. Elsinore missed a 38-yard field goal with 5:28 left in the game, giving Eisenhower the ball. Elsinore (2-3) begins Ivy League play Sept. 29 at home against Heritage.

Chaparral (4-1) – 35, Great Oak (2-3) – 3

• Game notes: Chaparral QB Dash Beierly picked apart Great Oak’s defense, throwing for 221 yards and three touchdowns while Jayce Venable ran wild, rushing for 178 yards, scoring twice in his 28 carries, and another in the air. Blake Lowe and Princeton Anderson hauled in the other two Beierly TD passes with Anderson clearing the century mark bringing down 106 receiving yards. Great Oak’s lone score came from field goal kicker Alejandro Colina in the second quarter. As seen on X (formerly Twitter), Chaparral laid claim to being city champs for the 14th time, despite the two teams being in separate leagues now.

Adelanto (2-3) – 26, Hemet (2-3) – 12

Perris (3-2) – 40, Jurupa Valley (1-4) – 32 (OT)

• Game notes:  Perris QB Ryan Arredondo tossed six touchdown passes, including the18-yard game-winner to Mike Lawson in overtime, to lift the Panthers (3-2) to a nonleague victory. Arredondo completed 21 of 25 passes for 341 yards. Lawson had 13 receptions for 129 yards and two touchdowns, and Jerett Sewell also hauled in two touchdown catches.

Liberty (4-1) – 48, San Gorgonio (4-1) – 7

• Game notes: The Liberty Bison held up their end defensively and capitalized on a number of turnovers defeating San Gorgonio 48-7 in their final nonleague games of the season. Andre Skelton had 176 all-purpose yards with three TDs as the team finished with 282 overall rushing yards on the night. After their Bye Week, in Week Five, Liberty will open Mountain Pass League play at West Valley.

La Puente (4-1) – 20, Temecula Prep (1-3) – 7

Vista Murrieta (4-0) – 30, Temecula Valley (2-3) – 13

SATURDAY 9/16

Manzanita League

Webb (3-0) – 34, Nuview Bridge (0-4) – 0

Silver Valley (3-1) – 62, St. Jeanne de Lestonnac (1-2) – 0

Nonleague

Capistrano Valley Christian (3-1) – 7, Santa Rosa Academy (3-2) – 6

Cal Lutheran 28, Downey Calvary Chapel 22:

• Game notes: Ren Ukai rushed for 154 yards on 21 carries and scored two touchdowns as the C-Hawks (2-2) won a nonleague game.

*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? Want to leave a game note? 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.