Greyhounds shut out by San Luis Obispo High in league championship match
Injuries hamper Greyhounds’ offense
– The Atascadero High School Greyhounds were blown out 35-0 by the San Luis Obispo High School Tigers in a match for the Sunset League Championship.
The Tigers will take the Sunset League Title with an undefeated conference record, and the Greyhounds finish second in the league with a 3-1 conference record.
SLO High’s firepower proved to be too much for the Greyhounds, as the Tigers scored at will and didn’t punt a single time throughout the entire game.
On their opening drive, SLO drove down the field on the legs of runningback Colbin Garrison, then quarterback Jace Gomes ran the ball himself for a seven-yard touchdown.
The Greyhounds got back on offense and attempted to move the ball on the ground, as they’ve found success doing over the season, but with injuries to their top runners, the Atascadero ground game wasn’t as threatening.
The San Luis Obispo High School Tigers football team. Photo from San Luis Obispo High School Instagram @slohsfb.
Runners Austin Smith, Damon Mitchell, and Joseph Hyde were all out for the Greyhounds, and many offensive players had to play both sides in order to fill in for injured players.
The injuries, combined with SLO High’s stout defense that forced three shutouts across the year, made Atascadero’s offensive drives a struggle.
The Tigers forced a punt, and the duo of Garrison and Gomes once again moved the ball with ease en route to another Gomes rushing touchdown, putting SLO High up 14-0.
Atascadero seemed to find their rhythm on their second offensive outing, quarterback Josiah Gaona found receiver Jeremy Hendrix for a 14-yard gain. With completions to Michael Trejo and tight end Cole Jeckell as well, the Greyhounds were moving the ball in their own right.
However, the Tiger defense once again strapped up, forcing Atascadero to attempt a 43-yard field goal. The snap on the attempt was bad, and by the time kicker Armand Mastagni walked up to the ball, SLO’s defenders were there to block it.
As their offense couldn’t overcome the Tigers, the Greyhound defense had to step up to keep them in the game. Shortly after SLO got the ball back, cornerback Tyson Tenhaeff intercepted Gomes and returned the ball to the 40-yard line.
The Greyhound offense still couldn’t gain traction though, and were forced to give the ball away once again. On the ensuing Tiger drive, Garrison fumbled in the backfield and Greyhound corner Tony Kreider recovered the ball to give the offense another shot at scoring.
With the clock running down, Atascadero made one last attempt at scoring in the half, but couldn’t find the endzone before the end of the quarter.
The second half was more of the same, as the Tigers continued to dominate on offense and defense.
Garrison and runningback Michael Milner scored touchdowns, and Gomes kept up his outstanding play.
In the fourth quarter, running back Jacob Garcia scored to put SLO High up 35-0 and activate a running clock.
The game finished with Atascadero failing to score, and losing the Sunset League Title to San Luis Obispo High.
The Greyhounds now look forward to the CIF playoffs. They will find out who their opponent is on Saturday and will play on Friday, Nov. 8.
– By Lano Somotun
