COLTON — CIF playoffs have a way of making games exciting. Where drive and ambition come to life, where it’s win or go home.
Colton football rallied past Ganesha, scoring 10 total touchdowns in a commanding 73-53 home victory Friday night.
With this win, Colton (6-5) will visit No. 3 Bellflower (7-4) in round two of the CIF Division 12 playoffs next Friday at 7 p.m.
Colton quarterback Koa Regalado completed 21 of 28 passes for 400 yards and nine passing touchdowns and added 44 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.
Kalvin Leon had 138 receiving yards and three touchdowns, while Jonathan Quiroz finished with 109 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
“We’ve kind of been in a do-or-die mode,” Colton coach Ray Rodriguez said. “The boys have been fighting all game long. We know there’s going to be times where we’re going to have some adversity, might give up some scores every once in a while, but we know we can compete. We know we can go all four quarters, and that’s what I think the boys have been able to do.”
The Yellowjackets’ offense came out with a bang, scoring on every drive except one.
Ganesha (8-3), despite the loss still put up 53 points and 9 touchdowns – enough to win most games. But the Giants’ defense couldn’t make stops.
“Their guys made the plays and we didn’t,” Ganesha coach Andres Hernandez said. “Their guys came to play and we didn’t. They just flat-out beat us. There’s no excuses, there’s nothing schematically. It was just they did what they were supposed to and we didn’t.”
Ganesha quarterback Eamon Graves completed 17 of 24 passes for 271 yards, ran 63 yards, threw four touchdowns and rushed for another.
Shamon Farley had 79 rushing yards, 93 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Albert Kelsey finished with 111 receiving yards, 56 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Ganesha began the scoring with a 13-yard rushing touchdown from Jaron Williams. But Colton would take the lead with a 12-yard passing touchdown from Regalado to Leon and a successful 2-point conversion.
Graves ran 10 yards to the house to give the Giants a 14-8 lead and less than a minute later Quiroz scored a 65-yard touchdown and a blocked extra point had the game tied at 14.
Farley scored on a 47-yard pass for Ganesha before Colton waltzed down the field again for a Leon 60-yard touchdown, tying the score at 21.
Colton had a successful onside kick, giving them the ball back and just 35 yards from the end zone. Regalado scored on a 17-yard run.
Ganesha had two scoreless drives and Colton had one before the offenses would start up again.
Leon scored a 55-yard touchdown and Quiroz scored a 10-yard touchdown for the Yellowjackets, while Farley ran 1 yard to the house and Graves completed a 10-yard pass to Nyjon Taylor to score.
Coming out of halftime, Colton had the 43-34 lead, and although the game was high-scoring, it was never out of reach for Ganesha.
The Giants went for the 2-point conversion three times and missed it every time.
Understandably so, as Ganesha played from behind for a majority of the game, but Colton’s defense wasn’t handing out two points for free.
Quiroz had three more touchdowns in a row: 34 yards, 30 yards and a 35-yard touchdown.
Henry Rodriguez scored on a 6-yard run and Taylor had a 27-yard touchdown in the third quarter for Ganesha, but as the score got further apart and time was ticking, anxiety crept in.
Colton held a 58-46 lead going into the final quarter and with one more touchdown, they sealed the game.
Kelsey had a 15-yard touchdown with seven minutes to go, but it wasn’t enough for Ganesha.
With four minutes left, Regalado completed an 18-yard pass to Julian Gonzalez who scored the Yellowjackets’ final touchdown.
“The kids go out there and do their damn job,” Rodriguez said. “I’m so proud of them, they just go out there and execute everything that we ask them to do.”
