Honor roll: The week’s best performances

“I think people rallied behind Jonas hurting himself,” El Camino head coach Archie Junio said.

Tarusan not only was the rally starter, he was the rally finisher. The junior enjoyed a spectacular performance, totaling five touchdowns, including a go-ahead catch at the end of the same drive Jonas Junio fell injured, a 24-yard touchdown grab from sophomore Noel Valdez.

This was Tarusan’s only score on offense though. The junior accounted for both of EC’s first-half scores, a 60-yard punt return to get the Colts on the board in the second quarter, followed by a 94-yard kickoff return.

He added two more scores as EC ran up the score in the second half with a pair of pick-6s for 90 and 51 yards.

“He was all over the place,” Archie Junio said.

In his first year as the Colts’ head coach, Archie Junio now claims a 1-0 Bell Game record. Not bad, considering he has been coaching various sports at EC since 1999, including as a junior-varsity football coach the last time Big Red took home the coveted Bell Trophy in 2003.

“I’m still on cloud nine,” Archie Junio said. “Our feet haven’t hit the ground yet.”

Nique Velarde, Summit Shasta volleyball. Summit Shasta officially joined the CCS last season, and the small Daly City charter school has now advanced the postseason in both 2017 and ’18. The Black Bears earned their first CCS victory in program history last Tuesday in a sweep at Crystal Springs Uplands in the Division V bracket, led by their fiery 5-1 outside hitter who went for nine kills, 10 digs and two service aces.

Allison Browne, Menlo-Atherton girls’ tennis. The junior No. 1 singles player completed an undefeated run through PAL play by capturing the PAL singles title. After going unbeaten during the regular season, Browne went 3-0 in the PAL tournament without dropping a set, losing just 12 games over eight sets.

Justin Anderson and De’Marshaun Payton, Menlo-Atherton football. The Bears rushed for 297 yards in a 51-0 shutout of rival Woodside. Anderson saw the best of it, rushing seven times for a career-high 124 yards and two touchdowns; the junior quarterback added 69 yards passing and a third score. Payton also rushed for triple-digits, taking 14 carries for a season-best 100 yards and a touchdown.

Maria Sell, Aragon girls’ water polo. The senior utility player scored a game-high six goals as the seventh-seeded Dons knocked off No. 2 Sobrato in the first round of the CCS Division II tournament. Down 9-7 entering the fourth period, Sell scored the game-tying and game-winning goals, both in the final two minutes.

Cam Grant, Aragon football. The senior is a force in all phases of the game. In addition to his running back, quarterback and linebacker duties, Grant also serves as the Dons’ punter and had a definite impact during his team's 14-13 loss to Hillsdale. Grant punted four times and pinned the Knights inside their 20 every time. He averaged 47.25 yards per punt, including distances of 52, 52 and 60 yards as Hillsdale started drives on its own 18-, 12-, 19- and 7-yard lines.

Jessica Lefevre, Hillsdale football. A senior kicker, Lefevre nailed both her extra-point attempts, the second of which proved to be the difference in the Knights’ 14-13 win over Aragon.

Antonio Gonzalez and Braylin Lux, The King’s Academy football. TKA powered past Jefferson 55-19, gaining 289 of its 450 total yards by air. In just his third game at quarterback, the sophomore Gonzalez was 9-of-10 passing for 289 yards and five touchdowns. Four of those scores were caught by Lux, as the senior running back had five receptions, four for TDs, for 174 yards. Lux added five carries for 67 yards and a fifth score, giving him 1,125 rushing yards on the regular season.

Brandon Malaingi, Capuchino football. The senior quarterback closed his prolific varsity career in style, leading the Mustangs to their fifth straight win in the annual Battle of the Strip rivalry game against Mills. Malaingi totaled 232 yards — 121 rushing, and 111 passing with touchdown passes of 43 and 58 yards — while on defense the safety nabbed two interceptions.

John Willard, Sacred Heart Prep football. The Gators went large in the Valpo Bowl rivalry game with neighbor Menlo School, scoring 43 points in the first half en route to a 53-15 victory. Willard enjoyed a solid night out of the backfield, rushing five times for 95 yards and two touchdowns, including a 50-yard score. He added a third touchdown on defense, going 27 yards on a pick-6.

Julian Morin, Carlmont football. Another night in the life of Carlmont’s star running back, as the senior carried 21 times for 118 yards, leading his team to a 14-7 win over rival Sequoia. Morin isn’t done yet as the PAL Lake Division champion Scots are headed to the CCS playoffs. As it stands, though, the senior has racked up a total of 1,260 regular-season rushing yards.

Justin Hsu and Kaimei Gescuk, Carlmont cross-country. With Carlmont sweeping both the boys’ and girls’ PAL Cross-Country Championships Saturday at Crystal Springs, Hsu and Gescuk fronted the championship efforts. The junior Gescuk won the individual girls’ title with a time of 18 minutes, 41 seconds. Hsu won the boys’ title with a time of 15:57.

Abby Miller, Notre Dame-Belmont volleyball. What an effort the Tigers put forth in slugging it out with Harker en route to winning the CCS Division IV championship, the program’s seventh all-time CCS crown. Miller was a powerhouse, and the perfect complement to senior Kendall Peters’ double-double performance of 16 kills and 16 digs. Miller, a sophomore outside hitter, buried a match-high and career-high 19 kills, and led the Tigers back from a 2 sets to 1 deficit by swinging for a .500 hitting percentage in Game 4 and a .625 percentage in Game 5.