Vaqueros run away with rematch

By David Dickens
Updated: November 8, 2026

Cota LaChappa scores a touchdown on Friday night.

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL
CIF SAN DIEGO SECTION DIVISION IV — FIRST ROUND
No. 8 EL CAPITAN (7-4) 42, No. 9 SANTANA (7-4) 7

By David Dickens
EastCountySports.com

LAKESIDE — El Capitan will take a six-game winning streak and a ground game that just averaged more than 10 yards a carry to top-seeded Valley Center. The Vaqueros earned the trip Friday night by rushing for 268 yards and five touchdowns in a 42-7 victory over Santana in the CIF San Diego Section Division IV playoffs.

The Grossmont Valley League champions had beaten the Sultans 19-7 in Santee on Oct. 2. The rematch was decided by a wider margin, but the defense held Santana to a single touchdown again. El Capitan scored in every quarter and pulled away after taking a 21-7 halftime lead.

Senior Anthony Mattar scored twice in the first half. He went 19 yards off right tackle with 7:18 left in the first quarter, then scored from the 3 after El Capitan turned a muffed Santana punt into another short field. Ethan Soule was credited with the recovery, and Elijah Arzu broke a 35-yard run to set up Mattar’s second touchdown.

Santana got a special-teams break of its own in the second quarter. The Sultans recovered a muffed Tatum Morehouse punt at the El Capitan 31. Kolten “Koko” Thornton powered up the middle for 20 yards, and sophomore Landon Braaksma kept it for an 11-yard touchdown. Brenden Varner kicked the extra point.

A delayed screen to Michael Valencia II went from midfield to the Santana 15 and helped set up El Capitan’s third touchdown. Mattar ran for a first down at the 4, and Daniel Montijo handed to Valencia on a sweep for the score with 2:28 left in the half.

Santana threatened again before the break, driving inside the 10 in the final minute. Robinson Silva intercepted a pass at the 8 to end the drive. The Sultans were held scoreless the rest of the way.

Michael Castillo supplied the only touchdown of the third quarter, running 37 yards through the middle behind a block from Ethan Duncan. Hayden Passanisi threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Cota LaChappa in the fourth, and sophomore Maverick Darnell finished the scoring with a 40-yard run with 8:05 to play, after the Vaqueros had stopped Santana on downs.

Castillo led El Capitan with 93 yards on nine carries, Arzu added 64 on four and Mattar finished with 41 on six. Darnell gained 46 yards on two carries. Valencia rushed for 22 yards and caught two passes for 58, while LaChappa caught two for 37. Montijo and Passanisi combined for 115 passing yards, giving the Vaqueros 383 yards of offense. Ryder Powers made all six extra points.

Score by quarters
Santana    · 0 ·  7 · 0 · 0  — 7
El Capitan · 7 · 14 · 7 · 14 — 42

Silva ends threat, leads in tackles

Silva’s interception took away Santana’s chance to make it a one-score game before halftime. The sophomore also led El Capitan with 12 tackles. Drake Alduenda had nine, including two for loss, while Soule had eight to go with his fumble recovery. Powers added seven tackles and broke up two passes. Mason Sanchez had an 11-yard sack, and the Vaqueros finished with two sacks for 19 yards and 9½ tackles for loss.

The Sultans finished with 192 yards on offense, according to their detailed team stat line. Ethan Miller completed 11 of 24 passes for 85 yards, and Braaksma went 2 of 6 for 39 yards and rushed for 23. Denton Goar caught five passes for 22 yards, and Ethan Smith had Santana’s longest reception, a 34-yarder.

Thornton ends career strong

Thornton accounted for 216 all-purpose yards in his final game for the Sultans. The senior rushed eight times for 32 yards, caught four passes for a team-high 47 and returned five kickoffs for 137, with a long of 35. His 20-yard run was Santana’s longest of the night and set up its only touchdown.

Thornton also had five solo tackles, matching Morehouse and Brayton Knight. Dillon Timanus had four solos and an assist, and Anthony Terry finished with four total tackles. Morehouse averaged 37.5 yards on four punts.

Santana finished 7-4 after winning its final three regular-season games, including road victories over Valhalla and Monte Vista. The Sultans went 3-2 in the Grossmont Valley League.

Next for El Capitan — No. 1 Valley Center

DIVISION IV — QUARTERFINALS
No. 8 EL CAPITAN (7-4) at No. 1 VALLEY CENTER (5-5)
Friday, Nov. 13 — Valley Center High School

El Capitan takes six straight wins into the quarterfinals. Valley Center comes off a first-round bye after closing its regular season with a 49-28 loss to Ramona.

The Jaguars’ offense starts with senior running back Mitchell Stehly, who averages 107.7 rushing yards per game. Valley Center can also spread the field. Joaquin Stehly averages 65.9 receiving yards and Gauge Wright averages 60.8, while Casen Dunham and Jonathan Teter have combined for 19 touchdown passes.

The matchup to watch is Mitchell Stehly against the El Capitan front. The Vaqueros put Santana behind the chains often enough to force 30 pass attempts. If they can limit Stehly on early downs, they can put Valley Center in similar situations. On offense, El Capitan can make the Jaguars defend both Mattar between the tackles and Valencia and Arzu in space.

Series history

Valley Center won 31-28 at home in 2016, El Capitan won 14-13 in Lakeside in 2017, and the Vaqueros won 47-18 at Valley Center in 2023. All three were regular-season games, giving El Capitan a 2-1 edge in the series.