Patriots overcome injuries, tame Morse
- Updated: April 3, 2021
2021 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL
CHRISTIAN 17, MORSE 6
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN DIEGO – Christian High bottled up University of Oregon-bound running back Byron Cardwell and the Morse Tigers, 17-6, in an Eastern League game on Friday night.
The Patriots were beset by injuries entering the contest but somehow found a way to thwart the Tigers.
Senior quarterback Gabe Krug was 16-of-29 for 148 yards passing, and he also rushed for 97 yards to lead the Patriots offense, which patiently controlled the ball.
Krug rushed for an 8-yard touchdown in the third quarter and threw a touchdown pass to Hunter Provience for a 23-yard score and a 7-0 lead in the second quarter.
Chris Akridge led the receiving corps with eight receptions for 51 yards, while J.C. Gustin caught four balls for 53 yards.
“We had a phenomenal game,” Akridge said. “I’m so proud of each and every one of my teammates. It took everyone to win this game.
“Mr. Cardwell is a great player. We had fun guarding him because he’s quick and runs hard. His team is tough, we just buckled in. We’re tired of being the underdogs.”
Erik Markowitz had a sack – and then some – for the Christian High defense. He had a huge night but so did the rest of the defense.
“We played as a unit on defense,” Markowitz said. “I’m just glad to be playing out here with my brothers.”
Senior Alonzo Glenn led the Patriots with eight tackles, including 1 1/2 for loss. He also forced a pair of fumbles.
Van Nevling also forced a fumble for Christian (2-1).
The Patriots’ defense limited the Tigers’ rushing game to just 73 yards on 23 carries.
“Byron Cardwell is gigantic,” Christian head coach Danny Mitchell said. “He reminds me of Royce Freeman. Byron is very deserving of going to Oregon but we stuffed him all night.
Christian led 17-0 before the Tigers scored their only touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter with one minute remaining.
“Pat Kelly called the game on defense and he is responsible for our win on that side of the ball,” Mitchell said. “We paused the field last Saturday and said, ‘we need to have 11 guys running to the football the whole time.'”
The Patriots scored three points on a field goal in the second quarter and led 10-0 at halftime.
Christian held Morse (0-2) to just 1-of-7 third-down conversion tries, and 0-3 on fourth.
“We realized that we beat ourselves last week against San Diego,” Christian High’s Andrew Young said. “We decided to take charge and take the hit to (Morse). The entire staff puts in a lot of overtime and it finally showed through. We just have to do our job and play our hardest.”
Bad news came late in the game for the Patriots as Krug left the game with a likely broken collarbone. He missed most of last week’s contest after leaving early with an injury after slipping on the turf.
The Patriots will likely have a sophomore QB going forward in Jake Davila, throwing to a receiving corps made of up sophomores is Akridge, Provience, Gustin, Joey Merritt, and Isaiah Givens.
“Young and Markowitz had their best performance tonight,” said the coach.
Christian vs Morse @CHS___Athletics @SDPrepInsider @EC_Preps_SD @ECSportsDotCom @Daygofootball pic.twitter.com/vU6ggwcWqi
— Cameron Winkelman (@camwinkelman) April 3, 2021
