RIALTO — As the clock struck zero, the Rialto football team erupted in screeches of excitement; running on the field, waving their flag and dumping Gatorade on coach Derwin Henderson – and not because they just won their fourth game in a row, but because Rialto now held the title of Skyline League champions for the 2025 season.
Rialto defeated crosstown rival Carter with a 7-6 victory at Carter High School Friday night.
“I’m happy for them,” Henderson said. “From where we were to where they are now, it’s just night and day. They played, we (the coaches) just led them in the direction. You gotta be happy for them because they haven’t had any success over the last two years, now they got it. So it’s something they can remember for the rest of their life.”
Fifteen-year-old quarterback Geonie Seeney completed 5 of 7 passes for 36 yards and ran for 36 yards for Rialto (8-1, 4-0)
Although some of Rialto’s running backs were having a hard time getting through Carter’s defensive line, Isaiah Wilson was able to find space and run for 123 yards.
Both offenses had an extremely slow start, often punting after their first three downs.
“We (Rialto) gotta be able to throw the ball more,” Henderson said. “We gotta get better at it because more teams are going to stack the box to take away our running game.”
Both teams were still scoreless going into the fourth quarter and Rialto knew what was at stake.
And so did their fans, who cheered all night – sometimes even louder than Carter fans.
Carter quarterback Raymond Rubio completed 5 of 15 passes for 43 yards.
With 10 minutes remaining in the game, Deshalon Allen – who finished with 82 rushing yards – scored on a 4-yard run to finally put the first points on the board for Carter.
After a failed 2-point conversion, Carter (4-5, 2-2) led 6-0.
Rialto answered immediately to end the scoring. Wilson returned the kickoff 60 yards for a touchdown to put the Knights on top 7-6 with a successful extra point.
With two minutes left in the game, Carter threatened and had the passing game going until the drive ended on an interception by Rialto’s Christian Pasillas
For Rialto, it was the picture-perfect ending.
And for Carter, it was heartbreak.
But the season isn’t over yet.
“(I’m) definitely very disappointed,” Carter coach Felipe Salas said. “Not so much in our kids, our kids played very hard, they played as hard as they could. Just disappointed in the outcome. And I think it’s hopeful going into next week thinking we can win that game, get into the playoffs and be a brand new team.”
