NCL I roundup: Napa too much for Middletown

Middletown High, winner of the North Coast Section Division 5 football title last season, started off the 2019 season hosting Napa, a school with a much larger enrollment. No surprise, the host Mustangs were handled formidably by the Grizzlies, 33-13, who utilized their superior size and speed to push Middletown around the field.

“Napa was just bigger and it showed,” Middletown coach Bill Foltmer said. “The loss means absolutely nothing. Every team in our league would have lost to Napa.”

Middletown had trouble containing Napa's Division I prospect Brock Bauer, who led off the game with a 75-yard kickoff return to put the Mustangs in a 7-0 hole after one play.

“We should have never have kicked to Bauer in the first place,” Foltmer said. “That kid is a great player.”

Middletown's offense struggled, especially in the first half.

“Napa blitzed quite a bit and at times we didn't pick it up,” Foltmer said. “It was disruptive.”

Trailing 20-0 at halftime, the Grizzlies didn't fold up and were competitive in the second half, outscoring Napa 13-12.

Middletown's two scores came courtesy of a 2-yard run by Dillon Tingle and a 60-yard pass from Isaac Perez to Nico Bario.

“Our kids battled in the second half,” Foltmer said. “Our kids didn't give up.”

St. Vincent 37, McKinleyville 3

The visiting Mustangs sprinted to a 19-0 lead in the first quarter and cruised for the remainder of the nonleague game versus the Panthers at Humboldt State University in the opener for both squads.

“We started off the season on the right foot for sure,” St. Vincent coach Trent Herzog said. “It was a great team bonding trip.”

St. Vincent tacked on six points in the second and third quarters to build an insurmountable 31-0 lead going into the fourth quarter.

“Our offensive and defensive lines dominated,” Herzog said. “We came out and tried to establish the run, which we did.”

The Trojans pounded the Panthers on the ground for 240 yards and four touchdowns on 26 rushes. St. Vincent freshman running back Kai Hall (14 rushes, 170 yards) ran for scores of 2, 4 and 49 yards.

The St. Vincent defense stonewalled McKinleyville, which amassed only 46 yards in total offense. In addition, the Mustangs scored twice on defense - first via linebacker Giovanni Antonini's fumble recovery in the Panthers' end zone in the first quarter and then again on a 24-yard pick-six interception by Tommy Izard in the third quarter.

San Marin 28, Kelseyville 6

The host Mustangs of Novato capitalized on a litany of Knights mistakes to earn the victory.

“San Marin is a very good football team. They are disciplined and made fewer mistakes than we did,” Kelseyville coach Erick Larsen said. “We made a ton of mental mistakes and had a ton of penalties.”

San Marin led 21-0 at halftime before losing the shutout in the third quarter.

“San Marin just executed better than we did,” Larsen said.

Carson City 57, Lower Lake 28

The host Trojans suffered a 29-point loss to the visiting Senators of Carson City, Nevada.