Vaqueros beat Norse on Senior Night
- Updated: October 6, 2023
2023 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL
EL CAPITAN 35, VALHALLA 9
ECS staff report
LAKESIDE — When officials from the CIF San Diego Section requested volunteers for football teams to switch some contests to Thursday night due to a shortage of game referees, El Capitan head coach Ron Burner was among the very first to raise his hand apparently
Determining it was to the Vaqueros’ vast advantage to play in a short-week situation, El Cap again came out of the gate quickly, mounting a 28-7 halftime to defeat visiting Valhalla, 35-9, Thursday (Oct. 5) at El Capitan Stadium.
The victory for El Capitan (6-2 overall, 2-0 league) kept the Vaqueros on target to meet Mount Miguel for the Grossmont Valley League championship and a first-round home game in the CIF playoffs. The meeting is slated for next Thursday (Octr 12) at Matadors Stadium in Spring Valley, starting at 7 p.m.
Meanwhile, Valhalla (2-4 overall, 0-2 GVL) is off to a winless start in league play.
It’s not just the 0-2 start, considering they opened against the top two contenders for the GVL crown.
Since the decade-plus since claiming the Grossmont Hills League crown in 2009 — Valhalla shocked Helixi n GHL action, but promptly fell to the Highlanders in their postseason opener — the Norsemen own a 19-42 since 2011 and a demotion from the GHL to GVL play.
The margin for points by the offense also ranks second-poorest since the Norsemen suffered consecutive shutouts three times (by Granite Hills and Santana, in 1980; Helix and Granite Hills, 1979; and Monte Vista and Helix, 1978.
El Cap’s early start featured three turnovers — two interceptions and a fumble recovery — by the defense, setting up short TD drives by the offense. The defense also limited Valhalla to just 1-for-7 in third down conversions prior to the intermission to post a 35-point cushion.
