Thanks to the Monrovia program for the stats, and Randy Bell for the photo
Football:
One of the biggest questions facing a Monrovia football program that went 10-1 in 2021 was whether Brian Salazar Junior could successfully replace an explosive Noah Rodriguez at quarterback.
And with Rodriguez looking on from the Wildcats’ sideline in a coaching capacity, Salazar has answered any doubts with an emphatic “yes.”
On Thursday night, the Salazar-led offense scored 44 first-half points at previously unbeaten El Rancho, and the Wildcats would cruise to a 58-26 victory.
MHS is now 3-0 to start the 2022 season and they’ve scored 143 points.
Salazar would complete 23 of his 31 pass attempts for 450 yards.
And that included five TD’s.
Future Washington State receiver, Carlos Hernandez, had 230 yards receiving, and a TD.
Marcel Jones rushed for 115 yards on 12 carries.
Jones finished with three TD’s for the Wildcats.
Jaylen Moore and Noah Ellison both had 105 yards receiving.
Moore caught one TD pass and Ellison had two.
Jack Zinn caught a 21-yard TD from Salazar.
Up next: Monrovia will travel to Ayala next Friday in a battle of 3-0 programs.
The Bulldogs defeated visiting Leuzinger, 40-33, on Thursday evening.
Quotable:
Monrovia coach, Chris Williams: “I thought tonight was another slow start on a short week versus a very well coached El Rancho team. We started off a little slow, but made some big plays early to make up for the slow start. I was proud of the effort on the defense side. They were out there a long time against a well coached team. They made our team work. But offensively, Brian Salazar continues to grow and take ownership of his role as the leader on offense. And our wide receiver core (Carlos Hernandez, Jaylen Moore, Noah Ellison and Jack Zinn) present match-ups for an opposing defense. And (running back) Marcel Jones did a good job behind our offensive line. It’s great to see them starting to click. Proud of the effort and our ability to stay focused in a short week.”
Monrovia quarterback, Brian Salazar: “This big game actually started on Monday. We started watching film on El Rancho and worked hard during practice. I saw exactly what I wanted to (cover 0 and man to man). Right then, I knew that I needed to get the ball to my guys on these one-on-one situations, and let them do their thing. Everyone touched it today. Jaylen Moore with one TD, Carlos Hernandez with one, Noah Ellison with 2 TD’s and Jack Zinn had one. Can’t forget Marcel Jones with an amazing game with 2 scores. And our o-line played amazing, keeping me safe and allowing me to get the ball out. That’s what led us to the win today and I can’t take all the credit. We played like a team today and that’s what’s going to make us a great team. It was a good day for defense as well. We started off a little slow but finished strong.”
Monrovia wide receiver/defensive back, Carlos Hernandez: “Today’s win was nothing but grit and determination. We were the hungry team. Offense played to our standards, and put 58 on the board. We successfully ran and passed the ball all night. Our defense had a slow start, but we made some adjustments and started playing like ourselves. Overall, we played the way we should.”
Box Score:
M: 18-26-14-0-(58)
ER: 13-7-6-0-(26)
Records: Monrovia (3-0); El Rancho (2-1)
Softball: To view a photo gallery by Conrad Hunziker III, click on the Facebook link here: Facebook Although its 2024 season came to an end on Saturday in a CIF-SS Division 7 semifinal loss (8-6) to Eastside, Muir made gigantic progress and they should be celebrated. Their 21 wins is the program’s most in at […]
Baseball: Chino Hills earned its spot in this coming Tuesday’s CIF-SS Division 5 semifinal round. The Huskies rode the arms of Brody Buoncristiani and Andrew Baldomino to a 7-0 victory over their visitors from Montebello. Buoncristiani went 5 1/3 scoreless innings and he allowed three hits. Buoncristiani issued a pair of walks and struck out […]
Girls Athlete of the Week: Alyssa Galindo and the Etiwanda softball program had a memorable and highly successful week in the CIF-SS Division 3 playoffs. The Eagles went 3-0, including wins in the second round (6-0 at La Canada), quarterfinal (3-0 over Redondo Union) and semifinal rounds (5-1 at West Torrance) to earn a spot […]
Boys Athlete of the Week: Gabriel Lopez had almost zero room for error on Friday. The Arcadia High School lefty was facing the No. 1 seed and the eighth-ranked team in the state (MaxPreps) in the quarterfinal round of the CIF-SS Division 2 playoffs. The AHS senior would go the distance to defeat Westlake, 2-1, […]
Photos by Conrad Hunziker III Softball: The Muir softball program had a three-run lead and they were six outs away from a trip to the CIF-SS Division 7 championship game. But Eastside High of Lancaster scored four runs in the top of the sixth inning, and they got two more in the seventh to edge […]
Softball: No biggie. All Etiwanda needed to do to earn a spot in next weekend’s CIF-SS Division 3 championship game was to knock off top-seeded West Torrance on the Warriors home field. Alyssa Galindo secured that spot for her girls after a complete-game effort on Saturday. Galindo allowed one run on seven hits to the […]
Photos by Conrad Hunziker III & video highlights from Steve Ramirez Baseball: Village Christian took all the drama out of Friday’s CIF-SS Division 6 quarterfinal at West Covina very early. The Crusaders scored five runs in the top of the first inning, and they cruised to a 7-1 victory over the Bulldogs. VCHS out-hit WCHS, […]
Baseball: St. Francis is now just one win away from playing for a CIF-SS Division 4 championship. It would be the first time since 2006 since the Golden Knights made a title-game appearance. On Friday, the Golden Knights defeated their visitors from Paraclete, 4-1, in a quarterfinal round game at the Glendale Sports Complex. Lucas […]
Thanks to Arcadia baseball for this photo Baseball: Talk about a pitchers’ duel. Arcadia’s Gabriel Lopez narrowly bested Westlake’s Dylan Volantis on Friday. Lopez went all seven innings, and he allowed one run on two hits. He issued one walk and struck out 11 Warriors’ batters. Nolan Johnson singled in the top of the fourth […]
