Football - CIF Sac-Joaquin

Placer jumped out to a two-touchdown lead in the first quarter, then leaned on its defense to hold off Ripon 14-7 on Friday night.

The Hillmen struck first after senior Isaiah Caminiti intercepted a Ripon pass and gave Placer possession at the Indians’ 1-yard line. Senior running back Jesiah Aday punched it in from there, and Diego Rossell added the extra point for a 7-0 lead.

Placer wasted little time adding to it. After forcing another Ripon punt, the Hillmen found the end zone again on a 40-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Cole Atwood to senior receiver Ryan Alonso. Rossell’s second extra point made it 14-0 before the end of the first quarter.

That was all the scoring Placer would need, though Ripon made things interesting in the second half. The Indians recovered a Placer fumble and returned it 1 yard for a touchdown early in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 14-7. Placer answered with a drive deep into Ripon territory but came away empty after missing a field goal.

Ripon had multiple opportunities to tie the game in the fourth quarter, driving inside the Placer 30 on its first possession of the period. The Hillmen defense came up with consecutive sacks, including one by senior Ryder Farrauto, to force a turnover on downs.

Ripon’s final threat came with less than five minutes remaining. The Indians moved from their own 21-yard line to the Placer 17, but again came up short on fourth down.

Placer took over with 2:07 remaining and converted a key first down to cross midfield and run out the clock.

Atwood completed 4 of 7 passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. Montoya praised Atwood’s performance as he stepped in for the injured Chase Rodarte.

“He had some big runs and threw for a few huge plays, including a big touchdown to Ryan Alfonso,” said Montoya of Atwood. “He had the game clinching play to Hudson Swain in the fourth quarter.”

Aday led the Hillmen with 44 rushing yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. Farrauto recorded 1½ sacks, and Tony Ambriz and Caminiti each had eight tackles to help Placer hold Ripon to seven points.

The Hillmen improved to 2-0 with the victory and will hit the road for the first time this season on Friday as they take on Laguna Creek in Elk Grove.

Colfax 46, Argonaut 14

Colfax bounced back from last week’s opening loss on the road, rolling past Argonaut 46-14 in Jackson Friday night behind a dominant performance from senior running back Graeson Howard.

Colfax coach Jason Stowers said he believed that the Falcons learned from their mistakes from the previous week and made sure not to get complacent again.

“We owned up to playing reckless with our penalties,” said Stowers. “It is a fine line between being reckless and out of control.”

Howard carried 27 times for 244 yards and four touchdowns, averaging nine yards per carry as the Falcons piled up 490 total yards. Junior quarterback Adam Amatangelo completed 10 of 16 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Brady Stowers was his top target, catching five passes for 118 yards. Howard also contributed three receptions for 29 yards.

Junior Cody Aker added eight tackles, including two tackles for loss, and intercepted a pass that he returned 33 yards. The victory gave Colfax another strong offensive showing, with the Falcons averaging nearly 11 yards per play while holding Argonaut to 14 points.

Colfax (1-1) will visit Dixon Friday night.

Del Oro 19, St. Francis 17

Del Oro thwarted a late comeback attempt from St. Francis in Mountain View Friday night, kicking a field goal in the final seconds to down the Lancers 19-17 and improve to 2-0 on the season.

“It was the epitome of a team win. The guys battled all night,” said Del Oro coach Josh Parry.

The Golden Eagles built a 16-7 lead early in the fourth quarter behind three field goals from Malik Harris and a 66-yard punt return touchdown by Chase Carmazzi.

St. Francis answered with a 23-yard field goal before a touchdown with about two minutes remaining put the Lancers ahead 17-16.

Del Oro got the ball back at its own 25 and drove into St. Francis territory, setting up Harris for the game-winning kick. The senior split the uprights from 25 yards with one second remaining.

Harris finished 4-for-4 on field goal attempts, connecting from 27, 25, 30 and 25 yards.

Del Oro quarterback Grayson Haugen completed 22 of 31 passes for 231 yards, with Brennen Gibbs leading the Golden Eagles with 65 receiving yards and 56 rushing yards. Chase Carmazzi added seven catches for 72 yards.

The Golden Eagles' defense also recorded eight tackles for loss, with Landen Parry leading the way with nine tackles and four tackles for loss. Ty Sauve added eight tackles, including two for loss.

Del Oro will remain on the road this week as it travels to Palo Cedro to take on Northern Section power Foothill.

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Football roundup: Placer, Del Oro win close; Colfax blows out Argonaut