Scots take down Mustangs

And Thursday night, the Scots finally put it all together. The offense was its usual clinical self and made a number of big plays, they got just enough of a running game, the defense came finally acquitted itself and special teams was flawless and it culminated with a 31-19 win over Capuchino in Belmont.

“I’m glad we pulled it out,” Rado said. “We finished a mission. Just glad to get a win. I’m happy for the kids.”

The Carlmont offense had just 226 yards of offense, with just 20 yards rushing. But that was actually a better final total than what the Scots had on the ground at halftime — which was minus-45, thanks in large part to a pair of Capuchino sacks and a couple of bad snaps.

Kaisei Trotter and Max La Vrar combined for 66 yards on 16 carries, with Trotter bulling his way into the end zone from 2 yards out to put the Scots up 21-7 on the first drive of the second half.

Carlmont managed only three first downs rushing, but two of them came on the Scots final drive — which culminated with Carlmont’s final score of the game as the Scots were trying to run the clock out.

“We ran the ball just enough to be physical,” Rado said.

A 9-yard Trotter run gave Carlmont a first down at the Capuchino 50 and on the next play, La Vrar broke off the biggest play of the night for the Scots, scooting 40 yards down to the 10-yard line.

Facing fourth-and-goal from the 18, the Scots bypassed a field goal attempt and instead put the ball in the hands of quarterback Brody Zirelli, who sent a perfect pass into the end zone for Dylan Sorensen, who hauled it in for his third touchdown of the night and a 31-13 lead with just over a minute to play.

“[Sorensen] plays basketball. He plays volleyball, does track. He’s a very good athlete,” Rado said.

Sorensen finished the game with 68 yards and two touchdowns on five catches as Zirelli completed 18 of 27 passes for 206 yards.

Capuchino responded with a quick-strike score, needing just two plays to cover 37 yards, with Logan Arceo hooking up with Elias Qura to cut the Scots’ lead to 31-19 with under a minute left in the game, but they the Mustangs would get no closer.

Qura finished with six catches for a game-high 84 yards and the score.

It took a while for the Carlmont offense to get going, however, as the Scots only ran three plays in the first quarter — and those didn’t come until there was under three minutes left in the opening period.

And yet it was the Scots who took a quick 7-0 lead on just the fourth play of the game. Capuchino took the opening kickoff and was staring at a three-and-out from its own 39-yard.

But a punt in that situation by Mustangs is not a given and Sorensen was ready.

Good thing he was as Arceo, who also serves as the Capuchino punter, took the snap and fired a pass over the middle.

But Sorensen broke on the pass, stepped in front of the intended receiver, snatched the ball in stride and went 49 yards the other way for the pick-6 and a 7-0 Scots lead less than three minutes into the game.

It was double-edged sword, however, as it meant the Scots defense was right back out on the field and this time the Mustangs turned to what they do best: ground and pound. Starting at their own 28, the Mustangs marched 72 yards on 12 plays, mixing effective runs from both Carmel Villareal and Siosi Kupu, who combined for 138 yards rushing.

Kupu capped the drive with a slithering 9-yard run to the tie game at 7-all with 2:46 left in the first quarter.

Carlmont, with its first offensive possession, went backward. Capuchino’s Luke Qura had back-to-back tackles for losses on the first two plays — a six-yard loss on a run play and then he sacked Zirelli for a 2-yard loss before the Scots eventually punted.

Capuchino, energized by its previous drive, looked like it was poised to simply out-physical the Scots. Starting from their own 8-yard line, the Mustangs moved to Carlmont 41-yard line on eight plays.

But on the ninth, the Mustangs fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Carlmont’s Derek Anderson to end the threat.

The teams then exchanged punts before Carlmont took a lead into the locker room at halftime. Taking over a its own 39, the Scots moved down the field on the arm of Zirelli. Faving a third down at the Capuchino 17 with under 20 seconds left in the half, the Zirelli faked a handoff right before spinning back to his left and lofting a perfect pass toward Sorensen.

The pass narrowly avoided the outstretched arm of Capuchino defensive back Jax De Jager and dropped right into the hands of Sorensen, who got a foot down for a 14-7 lead with five seconds left in the half.

The Scots then took the second-half kickoff and went 54 yards on seven plays — the key play being a 30-yard, Zirelli-to-Austin Sotto completion on fourth down that gave the Scots a first down at the Capuchino 8. Two plays later, Trotter muscled his way into the end zone for a 21-7 lead.