Monarchs, Patriots, Wolf Pack all fall

By Ramon Scott
Updated: August 31, 2025

Chrsitan High records a sack on Saturday against Bishop's.

2025 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL

Kearny 12, Monte Vista 6 (OT)

SPRING VALLEY – Monte Vista dropped to 1-1 on the season after suffering a 12-6 overtime loss to visiting Kearny on Friday night in the Monarchs’ second home game of the year.

The Monarchs capitalized on a mistake early, scoring on their first possession after Kearny fumbled the opening kickoff at its own 10-yard line. Rahshawn Florence forced the turnover, and senior Dupree Flenoid recovered.

Three plays later, quarterback Derrick Taylor connected with Florence on a 6-yard touchdown pass. The two-point conversion attempt was stopped, leaving Monte Vista with a 6-0 lead with 10:33 remaining in the first quarter.

The defenses took over from there.

Kearny tied the game late in the second quarter on a 14-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Jayvon Peterson, who broke away from two defenders on a short route to the left and scored with 3:56 left in the first half.

The game went to halftime tied 6-all.

Neither side managed to break through in the second half. Monte Vista’s defense held Kearny in check down the stretch, forcing the Komets to punt or stall out on their late possessions. With under 1:30 remaining, the Monarchs were forced to punt, and Kearny started at its own 32-yard line. Monte Vista’s defense held firm again, sending the contest to overtime.

Kearny took the ball first in the extra frame and scored on a 21-yard touchdown pass from Makai Nguyen to Isaias Crespo.

The Komets missed the extra-point try, leaving the door open at 12-6. However, the Monarchs were unable to answer on their possession, and Kearny left with the victory.

Taylor finished with 71 passing yards and one touchdown. Florence had the 6-yard touchdown reception, while Xzavier Carpenter caught four passes for 53 yards. Deon Hunter paced the ground game with 71 rushing yards.

BISHOP’S 21, CHRISTIAN 7

LA JOLLA – The Christian High Patriots held their ground for two quarters against one of San Diego’s top private-school football programs, but the 17th-ranked Bishop’s Knights finally broke through after halftime and handed the Patriots a 21-7 setback on Saturday night.

The annual rivalry saw the Patriots’ defense stonewall the Knights for the entire first half, sending the teams to the locker room locked in a scoreless tie.

Christian junior quarterback Kaleb Runkle moved the ball through the air at times, completing 20-of-40 passes for 163 yards, but the Knights’ defense prevented the Patriots from sustaining long drives until late in the contest.

Bishop’s came out of the break with urgency, putting together two third-quarter touchdowns to grab a 14-0 lead.

The Patriots responded in the fourth when Runkle found senior Roman Gustin for a 28-yard touchdown strike. Senior kicker Steven Benson added the extra point to cut the deficit in half, but the Knights answered with a final scoring drive to close out the game.

Gustin led all Christian receivers with 86 yards on four catches, including the team’s lone touchdown. Junior Kai Rosier added seven receptions for 50 yards, while senior Hank Houston hauled in four passes.

The Patriots’ rushing game was limited to 54 net yards, with Runkle picking up 32 on scrambles.

Defensively, Christian showed grit in holding Bishop’s scoreless before halftime.

Freshman linebacker Julian Morones made a strong impression with eight total tackles, including two for loss.

Senior Chase Togerson also had eight stops and shared a sack with senior Jacob Zacharzuk, while Houston added 1.5 tackles for loss among his seven total tackles.

Junior Everick Randall and senior Ronnie Scott chipped in five and three tackles, respectively.

The loss drops Christian to 1-1 to start the 2024 campaign.

Next up, the Patriots will take their longest road trip in program history, traveling to Seattle to face King’s High School in a nonleague contest.

King’s, which went 7-4 last season and swept its 1A Emerald Sound League schedule (3-0), will be making its season debut.

While Christian enters with a higher national rating, the travel factor makes the matchup appear close to even on paper.

UNIVERSITY CITY 35, WEST HILLS 7

UNIVERSITY CITY – The West Hills Wolf Pack hit the road Friday night to take on high-powered 16th-ranked University City and found themselves battling against one of the section’s most productive quarterbacks. In the end, the Centurions claimed a 35-7 victory to improve to 2-0

Quarterback Evin Dill provided the highlight of the night for West Hills (0-2), rolling left to look for a receiver, then cutting back across the field on a scramble that turned into a 22-yard touchdown run late in the second quarter. Dill finished with 47 yards rushing on six carries and completed two passes for eight yards.

Running back Jacob Romeo was the most consistent weapon for the Pack, pounding out 80 yards on 12 carries, including a 17-yard burst that helped spark West Hills’ best early drive. Julian DeBeneditto added 11 yards on the ground and contributed a kick return, while Anthony Rosolino chipped in with three carries and a 12-yard punt return.

The Wolf Pack defense made several big plays to keep the Centurions from pulling away even earlier.

Zac Bondurant had two sacks, including a hustle play that turned a bad snap into a 20-yard loss.

In the secondary, EJ Lee-Fields came up with an interception and returned it 22 yards.

Special teams also had a solid outing as Christian Slojkowski punted twice for 86 yards, including a booming 53-yarder, while converting his lone PAT.

“We played through some adversity with strong will power,” Slojkowski said. “We played to the last whistle all the way through and showed that we have some young guys that are ready to step up throughout the season. From here, all we can do is improve and go out every day ready to learn and get better which we showed today for example in our kicking game, tremendously improving our PAT and Punt protection as well as playing a step up on defense compared to last week.”

University City (2-0) was once again led by senior quarterback Quentyn DeMara, who passed for 248 yards and three touchdowns and added a rushing score. The Centurions led 21-7 at halftime and never looked back.

For West Hills, the night also included some promising performances across the lower levels. The Freshmen defeated UC, 28-20, while the JV squad fell just short, 29-23.

The Wolf Pack now prepare for another difficult non-league road game next Friday at Mira Mesa. The Marauders have already defeated Grossmont Conference rivals Valhalla and El Capitan.