Written by: Mike Woicicki
Last night the Summerville Bears had one chance to finish the regular season 9 and 1 and to be the Mother Lode League champions. They had to beat the Linden Lions by at least 14 points to end up on top. Well, the Bears did not disappoint. They took a 14-to-7 lead into the halftime break and powered their way through the second half, scoring two more touchdowns while keeping the Lions out of the endzone and pulling off a 28-to-7 victory.
The Bears’ defense played an outstanding game, keeping the Linden passing machine that had averaged about 250 yards per game under wraps for the most part. They showed a bend-but-don’t-break side when they intercepted a Lion pass in the endzone to end one drive. They also caused and then recovered a fumble that rolled into the endzone on another Linden drive. Linden’s only touchdown was a defensive one on a Summerville fumble that ended with a scoop and a score of 20 yards.
Although known for their powerful running game, the Bears gained 108 yards in the first half through the air while completing 6 of 8 attempts. The two most significant completions were a 37-yard shovel pass from Bryce Leveroos to Malakai Lopez for a touchdown and a halfback pass from Orlando Lopez to Matthew Hike for 48 yards down to the one-yard line, which was then followed by a one-yard punch-in by Leveroos. Conversely, the Bears attempted no passes in the second half, but their offensive line became the driving force they needed, and Leveroos followed their lead with two short touchdown runs. Once again, Bryson Benites was good on all four extra-point kicks to round out the scoring.
The Hot Hit of the Game was made by Jeven Rodgers when he tackled a Lion kick returner on the eleven-yard line that made Linden start a drive deep in their own territory. The Player of the Game was Bryce Rathmel for his outstanding defensive play throughout the game.
The Bears will now move on to the playoffs, but we won’t know the where and when of their next game until the seating is announced on Sunday.
The Sonora Wildcats games air live on KVML 1450AM/102.7 FM, with Nick Stuart and Zeb Drivdahl. The Summerville Bears can be heard on 93.5 KKBN with Mike Woicicki and Mike Rodgers as your hosts for all the action.
For the Live Streaming Broadcast, and information about the season view the High School Sports Page here.