Game info by Harry Joe & photos by Conrad Hunziker III (https://www.instagram.com/anamorph.sports.photos/) & Tim Lunney, & video highlights from David Guerrero.
Football:
The Rio Hondo Prep postseason victory tour continued on a wet Friday night in El Monte.
The Kares scored three first-quarter touchdowns, and they cruised to a 28-0 victory over No. 2 seeded Troy in the quarterfinal round of the CIF-SS Division 5 playoffs.
Dating back to 2023, RHP is now 10-0 in CIF-SS Division 9, 7 and 5 playoff games.
And the SGV area’s best-coached program secured its 12th consecutive win in 2025.
Noah Penunuri, the reigning two-time 210 Prep Sports Football Player of the Year continued his excellence just weeks after returning from a rib injury that cost the RHP senior three games.
He returned in week-four, but No. 31 didn’t start carrying the ball fulltime until late in the season.
Penunuri rushed for 186 yards on 18 carries.
That included TD runs of 5, 30, 58 and 1 yard.
Penunuri scored three TDs in a six-and-a-half-minute stretch in the first quarter, and he closed out the Kares scoring with a 1-yard TD run with 6:29 to play in the game.
RHP had a 318-36-yard advantage on the ground, and a 16-10 edge in first downs.
The Rio Hondo Prep defense deserves as much credit as anyone.
The Kares ‘D’ shut out a Warriors program that averaged 36 points per game, and they held THS to just 124 yards of total offense.
Penunuri also had a game-high seven tackles.
Troy Seto finished with five tackles and Christan Lee had four.
Nathaniel Shine, Tyler Dang and Elijah Gavia tallied three tackles apiece.
Gavia also had an 8-yard sack.
Elias Har had a tackle and an interception that he returned 29 yards.
Troy’s Ethan Mundt gained 57 yards on 17 carries.
Mays completed 7-of-15 for 88 yards, including the interception.
RHP’s Yanick Diaz only attempted two passes in the rain, and he completed an 11-yard completion to Shine.
Shine also gained 74 yards on 10 carries.
Lee carried the ball six times for 53 yards.
In a game that featured two programs with a combined record of 21-1, both teams played with incredible discipline.
The Warriors and Kares combined for just three penalties for 25 yards.
It should be mentioned that Easton Jara went 4-for-4 on extra-point attempts in the heavy rain.
Up next: The Kares will host La Serna next Friday at 7 at Arroyo High School.
The Lancers (9-3) edged Aliso Niguel, 10-7, in South Orange County.
To view a photo gallery by Conrad Hunziker III, click on the Facebook link here: Facebook
To view a photo gallery by Tim Lunney, click on the Facebook link here: Facebook
Quotable:
Rio Hondo Prep senior, Noah Penunuri: “Back when I got injured, I didn’t know what the status for the rest of the season would be. I’m very happy to do my part, but I believed in my guys while I couldn’t compete. We knew Troy wanted to run the ball hard, and we had really good game planning for their formations. We thought it would be a dogfight. I feel like our defense played a great game. We watched a lot of film, and we all completed our assignments. We are very grateful to our coaching staff. We know we wouldn’t be where we are without them. They are amazing. I feel like the D-line did a great job. Troy Seto and Christian Lee came to hit. We feel like we can compete in Division 5. It’s hard, but that’s how we want it.”
Box Score:
T: 0-0-0-0-(0)
R: 21-0-0-7-(28)
Scoring:
R: Noah Penunuri 5 run (Easton Jara kick)
R: Noah Penunuri 30 run (Easton Jara kick)
R: Noah Penunuri 58 run (Easton Jara kick)
R: Noah Penunuri 1 run (Easton Jara kick)
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Records: Troy (10-2); Rio Hondo Prep (12-0)
Division 5 Playoff Scores:
Redondo Union 14, St. Paul 13
Loyola 21, Bonita 14
La Serna 10, Aliso Niguel 7
Rio Hondo Prep 28, Troy 0
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