Heading into last week’s
game at Nipomo, the postseason outlook was promising: A win and the Pirates
would all but assure themselves a playoff berth.
Instead, Santa Ynez fell 36-8 to the Titans and sustained key injuries in
the process. Scott Arellano (calf), who a week earlier accounted for all of
Santa Ynez’s 21 points against Templeton, and Travis
Porter (knee) are among those who didn’t finish the Nipomo game.
In any case, the Pirates
must now regroup quickly with undefeated St. Joseph coming to town Friday for a
7:30 p.m. kickoff.
While Santa Ynez sports a 5-3 overall mark (3-2 in Los Padres League
play), the visiting Knights are 8-0 following a 34-14 win over Morro Bay.
And don’t expect St. Joseph,
which has no key injuries, to somehow overlook its opponent.
“We really are subscribing
to the cliché, one game at a time,” said St. Joseph’s head coach, Mike Hartman,
in his fifth year at the helm. “This is our last league game of the season, our
league finale. One of our team’s main goals is to defend our championship.”
Leading the way is starting
quarterback Jacob Cano, whose importance to the Knights can’t be overstated.
“He’s the leader of our
offense. Jacob is very poised and has been in a lot of big games,” Hartman
said, adding that Cano also plays varsity basketball and baseball. “He doesn’t
get rattled.”
That’s imperative when
facing the Pirates’ pro-active and destructive defense.
Said Hartman: “They have an
aggressive, attacking style and like to blitz. They’re tight on the line of
scrimmage.”
The coach said his Knights must
be prepared for Santa Ynez’s balance on offense. He
credited Santa Ynez coach Ken Gruendyke
for doing an “excellent” job, considering where the Pirates were a year ago.
“And there’s always been a
great history between these teams, especially at Santa Ynez,
where some strange things have happened (in past games),” Hartman said.
Gruendyke, for his part, isn’t depending on unusual
occurrences. He’s hopeful St. Joseph might be overconfident in light of Santa Ynez’s misfortune at Nipomo but also knows the going will
be rough.
“The Knights are big, tough,
strong and fast,” he said.
The Pirates, added Gruendyke, must prevent St. Joseph’s dangerous tailback
K.J. Cusack and versatile signal-caller Cano from busting loose.
“They have a nice one-two
punch, and a dominating line that is the key to their foundation and success,”
the coach said. “We have to have schemes for them.” Even so, he pointed out,
the Pirates must look in the mirror first and foremost.
“We can’t only concern
ourselves with them; we have to play a better game ourselves,” Gruendyke said. “We have to get some confidence back. We
just have to convince the kids to play our best game and see what happens.”
What transpired a week ago
had to be frustrating for Santa Ynez players and
coaches alike. The Pirates invaded Nipomo riding a
three-game winning wave, only to find themselves shipwrecked.
Senior quarterback Tyler Shean managed 171 yards on 12 completions, despite getting
sacked eight times. For Nipomo, QB Josh Correia
returned after a two-week hiatus to amass 303 yards and three TD passes against
Santa Ynez’s previously immovable defense.
Gruendyke thought his team was sufficiently focused before the
game.
“But we found out Nipomo was
well-prepared and ready to get after us,” he said, noting the Titans’ pair of
successful drives out of the gate. “It would’ve been nice to slow them down
early because in the second quarter, we got our offense rolling and might’ve
gone into halftime tied. In the third, we had another big drive but weren’t
able to capitalize.”
As for Santa Ynez’s lingering injuries, Gruendyke
saw promising signs: Will Lopez (concussion) and Skyler
Barrick were probable for the St. Joseph game, while
Arellano’s status was undisclosed as of Tuesday. Porter underwent an MRI exam;
he is out for the season.
Extra point: Prior to Friday’s
kickoff, the Pirates’ senior players, cheerleaders, band members and their
parents will be introduced as part of Senior Night.
jluksic@syvjournal.com