Bears Run Over Gustine

Written by: Mike Woicicki

After a bye week for the Summerville Bears, they hosted the Gustine Reds last night in the second round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 7 playoffs. The Reds, knowing the Bears average 42 points per game, decided to use the clock to keep the Bears offense off the field. They received the opening kickoff and started their first drive on their own 24-yard line. Each time they lined up to run a play, the quarterback waited for the back judge to raise his hand, letting everyone know that there were only five seconds left on the play clock. Then they snapped the ball. Little by little, they drove the ball down to the Bears’ 16 when the Bears finally stopped them. At this point, there were only 47 seconds left in the first quarter. The Reds had successfully used up twelve minutes but did not score. At this point, the Bears came out with a no-huddle offense and by the end of the quarter they were over midfield. A minute later, Bryce Leveroos ran 16 yards for the Bears’ first touchdown of the night.

Gustine continued to milk the clock, but starting with their second possession, the Bears’ defense tightened up and held the Reds to many 3 or 4-and-outs. Also, the Bear offense kicked into high gear and scored on every possession. The Bears scored 35 points in the second quarter and cruised to a 56-to-0 victory even though there was a running clock for most of the second half.

After Leveroos scored the first second-quarter touchdown, Colton Cash took a Leveroos shovel pass and scampered 26 yards for their second score on a one-play drive. Then Isaac Biggs sprinted 21 yards up the middle to give the Bears a three-touchdown lead. On the next Gustine possession, they punted the ball only to have Orlando Lopez return it 43 yards to the Reds’ 16. Three plays later, Lopez took it in from the one. Throughout the entire second quarter, the Bears continued with their fast-paced no-huddle offense and capped off the scoring with an 18-yard pass from Leveroos to Lopez.

With the running clock in the second half, the Bears continued their barrage, with Cash running one in from 12 yards out and Freshman Lea Karter taking it twice from 12 and 13 yards, respectively. Once again, Bryson Benites was a perfect 8-for-8, kicking extra points.

Luke Larson had the Hot Hit of the Game when he leveled a Gustine runner and stopped the Reds from converting a first down on the Bears’ 16-yard line. Evan Roberson was named the Player of the Game for his outstanding defensive play, which included many individual tackles and causing a Bear-recovered fumble.

With this win, the Bears move to the third round of the playoffs and will host the Big Valley Christian Lions next Friday at 7 p.m.