Following their close 21-14 win against Pasadena Poly on Sept. 11, the Malibu High School varsity football team was tested with their first away game against Saint Monica High School. The game was held at Saint Bernard High School on what was a foggy and eventful night.
The Sharks began the contest on defense, facing a potent Saint Monica offense led by quarterback Matthew Partyka. Malibu’s defense started strong though by forcing a punt on their first possession.
“I thought the defense played their butts off,” Sharks Head Coach Ray Humphrey said. “I was worried about their quarterback, he was good and he scrambled a lot, but I think we did our job on defense.”
The Sharks’ offense, however, had trouble finding a rhythm in the first half. This was the Sharks’ first game without starting quarterback Chris Konkol, who was injured in the game against Pasadena Poly. Taking Konkol’s place at the helm of the Sharks’ offense was sophomore receiver Brennan Cassone, who had a breakout game against Poly in which he accumulated 170 receiving yards, a touchdown and the game-sealing interception.
“We didn’t have any offensive continuity in the first half,” Humphrey said. “We couldn’t run the ball, we were just off a step.”
In addition to struggles on the offensive side on the ball, the Sharks also made numerous mistakes on special teams, which continually gave the Saint Monica offense good field position to work with. Despite this, the Sharks defense surrendered only 14 point by halftime, with both scores coming off of drives in which Saint Monica had advantageous field position. The Sharks defense also forced two interceptions, one by junior Devon Baldinger and the other by Cassone, during the first half of play. At the end of the first half, the Sharks trailed 14-0.
The third quarter began with both offenses going three and out, and having to punt. Once again, the Sharks offense struggled and the defense was stout and focused.
The Sharks were then hit with another major injury on the offensive side of the ball. Following a run with about six minutes left in the third quarter, starting senior running back Matt Mason suffered an ankle injury that forced a prolonged pause in the game, as the fire department was forced to come and cart Mason off the field. The severity of the injury is unknown at this time, but Mason will most likely miss the Sharks’ next game. The Sharks offense will miss Mason, who was their leading rusher in their first three games, as he ran for over 200 yards with a 4.95 yards per carry average and one touchdown. However, the Sharks are confident in their ability to overcome yet another injury to their offense.
“Matt is one of our star players,” senior Jeffrey Bloeser said. “We just need guys to step up and work hard. The mark of a real team is one that works through adversity, no matter how difficult it may be.”
Following the injury and a motivational speech from coaches and players, the Sharks defense once again came up big. Cassone recorded his second interception of the game on third down with five minutes left in the third quarter.
The Sharks offense then came up with a couple of good plays that netted decent yardage, but were marred once again by mistakes, as a snap from center David Sandborg sailed over Cassone’s head, resulting in a 22-yard loss. The Sharks were then forced to punt, keeping the score stagnant at 14-0 at the end of the third quarter.
The Sharks proved they were not out of the game yet, as they opened the fourth quarter with a hot and explosive offense. Cassone led a drive that resulted in a touchdown pass to Apollo Loomis, a sophomore who was recently promoted to the varsity squad, putting the Sharks down 7-14. Loomis would finish the day with two catches, one touchdown and 75 yards receiving.
However, another special teams error resulted in a big kick return by Saint Monica, giving their offense good field position, which eventually turned into a touchdown, as their quarterback threw his third touchdown of the game.
Down 21-7 with five minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Sharks offense delivered another incredible drive, capped off by a touchdown run by senior Saadiq Hassan. After a missed extra point, the Sharks found themselves down 13-21 with three minutes left in the game.
Following a Saint Monica punt, the Sharks offense found themselves in position to tie the game with 52 seconds left. However, Cassone threw his only interception of the night on the first play of the drive, sealing the victory for Saint Monica.
The Sharks play their next game at home on Saturday against Bellarmine-Jefferson High School, as the team will hope to improve their 1-2 record without possibly their leading rusher and quarterback.