Prep Football: Oak Hills tops Serrano and stays unbeaten on the season
Last week against Hesperia, Oak Hills ran the ball just eight times en route to a 49-16 win. The team adjusted to what the Scorpions gave them on defense and rolled with it.
Friday night against Serrano, Oak Hills head coach Robert Metzger adjusted the team’s offense to match what was given to them.
The Bulldogs ran the ball 28 times for 340 yards to beat Serrano 37-14 and improved to 8-0 on the season.
“They were doing a good job taking away our passing routes and getting Diego (Lopez) off his reads and stuff so we just felt like we had to establish the run better to loosen up the coverages,” Metzger said.
Serrano’s defense got to Lopez early, with Odis Hamer and Blake Chaffee recorded a sack in the first half.
Lopez ended up throwing just 11 passes.
Oak Hills running backs Gabriel Garcia and Karson Cox were given the ball and the job of opening up the defense for the passing game.
Cox was the headliner with 221 total offensive yards on just four of his plays throughout the night.
The first coming off a 63-yard passing touchdown from Lopez that opened up the scoring early in the first quarter.
Cox broke off a 46-yard run in the second quarter that helped set up a three-yard touchdown run just a few plays later to give the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead.
Serrano got a big play of its own late in the second quarter when wide receiver Trevor Sturdevant caught a pass from JJ Kavanaugh over two Oak Hills’ defenders. Sturdevant took it all the way for a 73-yard touchdown.
On the following drive, Cox busted out a 69-yard run to put Oak Hills at Serrano’s 11-yard line right before the end of the half. But, Oak Hills was unable to score before the clock ran down.
The passing game for Oak Hills opened up in the second half with Lopez finding Christian Macias and Maurice Parker for touchdowns.
After Oak Hills thwarted a fake punt attempt by Serrano, Cox immediately scored on a 43-yard run at the start of the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
What it means
Oak Hills starts the season 8-0 for the first time in school history as they head into next week’s big clash against Apple Valley to settle the league title.
Serrano drops to 1-2 in the MRL but still has a shot at third place, and a guaranteed playoff berth.
Key plays
Kavanaugh has had a rough start since being named the starter following Payton Cornell’s season-ending injury. He’s had to go against two top-30 California teams in Apple Valley and Oak Hills but he has shown improvement. On a third and 6 from midfield, Kavanaugh rolled to his left and threw a ball deep that was able to land in the waiting arms of Carlos Amplayo. Amplayo scored the 46-yard touchdown to reduce Oak Hills lead to 21-14.
Oak Hills increased its lead on the next drive with a catch by Parker. Lopez rolled right and found Parker for a short gain. But Parker juked right, ran inches off of the sideline, and dove into the end zone for the score.
By the numbers
254 — The number of total offensive yards from Cox.
16 — The number of total passing plays from both teams during the game. Oak Hills threw 11 passes, while Serrano threw five.
14 — The number of flags thrown in the direction of Oak Hills.
Game balls
While Cox led the way, Gabriel Garcia did not score any touchdowns but he helped set up some of them. He took 14 carries for 112 yards.
They said it
Cox on what he attributes his success on the ground to: “Line blocked perfect. The holes were there, I give it all to the line. #linewins.”
Metzger on how the opposition has been playing against Oak Hills the last few games: “I feel like we’re getting everyone's A-game right now. They’re giving us their best shot and playing the hardest against us.”
What’s next
Serrano is back home next Friday against Sultana where the fate of the third place in the MRL could be on the line.
Oak Hills is at Apple Valley in what is the biggest matchup the High Desert has arguably seen since the 2015 CIF-Southern Section Eastern Division title game between the Bulldogs and Serrano. Two top-30 teams face off with the MRL title on the line.
“I can expect Apple Valley to give us all they can and I expect for our kids to respond back,” Metzger said. “It’s going to be a great game and it’s going to be one of the top games in the High Desert.”
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Prep Football: Oak Hills tops Serrano and stays unbeaten on the season
