Warrior gridders struggle against Grizzlies, lose 61-21

Fallbrook High School's football team fell to 1-6 overall and 0-3 in Avocado East League competition with a 61-21 home loss Oct. 25 against Mission Hills.

"When you play the number one team in the county you can't afford mistakes, so any mistake you make against a dominant team with great athletes will be magnified," said Fallbrook head coach Kyle Williams.

"We had some mental mistakes on defense which Mission Hills absolutely took advantage of," Williams said. "We had to eliminate those mistakes in the first half, which we didn't do."

Mission Hills kicked off to start the game. The Warriors obtained one first down and then tried to pass on third down. The ball was intercepted on the Fallbrook 30-yard-line. Four plays later the Grizzlies scored, and the extra point gave Mission Hills a 7-0 lead.

Fallbrook then ran three plays before punting. The line drive punt didn't give the Warrior coverage team enough time to stop the return, which was run back for another Mission Hills touchdown to give the Grizzlies a 14-0 lead within the first five minutes of the game. "At that point the wheels just kind of fell off," Williams said.

Mission Hills had a 27-0 lead after the first quarter and a 41-0 advantage at halftime. "Mission Hills is a good team. We didn't need to help them out with our mental mistakes," Williams said. "We feel like it was the first real bad half that we've had since Mount Carmel."

Fallbrook's 41-6 loss Sept. 6 against Mount Carmel saw the Sundevils score 20 points in the first half, including a long touchdown pass with 10 seconds remaining in the second quarter.

Fallbrook’s three touchdowns were scored against Mission Hills’ second-string players, although Williams noted that the Grizzlies had previously allowed only 34 points all season. “Their backups did not give away any points this season until our game,” Williams said.

Boston Menossi ran two yards for a touchdown in the third quarter for the Warriors’ first score. Parker Roberson kicked the extra point to make the score 48-7.

In the fourth quarter Trevino Cordova ran for an 80-yard touchdown. “He broke a number of tackles and just raced to the end zone,” Williams said.

Fallbrook kicked off following that touchdown. The return was fumbled, and Nathan Montgomery not only recovered the ball but also returned it 35 yards for a touchdown. Montgomery’s 50-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown against Mt. Carmel was the Warriors’ only score against the Sundevils.

“Our kids never quit. They kept playing hard,” Williams said.

The Warriors travel to Escondido for tomorrow’s game. The Cougars have a 2-6 record. “We feel like we can compete against Escondido on Friday and we are treating it like a playoff game,” Williams said.

Because of Fallbrook’s strength of schedule, the Warriors are ranked among the top 12 Division III teams. Twelve teams will qualify for the CIF Division III playoffs, so a post-season berth is likely on the line when Fallbrook and Escondido square off. “It ought to be a very competitive game. Both teams match up fairly well,” Williams said.