LAKE ARROWHEAD — Bad weather didn’t hinder Rim of the World running back Tatum Ortiz, who rushed for a career-high 301 yards to help the Scots remain unbeaten with a 31-26 victory over Grand Terrace.
The senior started his night with a milestone run, taking the fourth play from scrimmage 76 yards for his 15th touchdown of the season and putting him at exactly 1,000 rushing yards for the campaign.
Ortiz finished his monster night for Rim (5-0) with three touchdowns on 38 carries.
Ortiz found the end zone as the first quarter ended and finished the first half with 195 rushing yards.
Countering each of Ortiz’s touchdowns was Grand Terrace junior quarterback Jaden Montano, who connected with senior receiver Titus Ramirez on the Titans’ first play from scrimmage for a 32-yard passing touchdown. Montano followed that with 78 yards passing on the Titans’ next possession, finishing the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run.
“We threw the ball with success, and I think that’s a huge step for our offense,” said Grand Terrace head coach Ryan Taylor, whose team fell to 3-3. “We’ve always been run-centric and if we’re able to balance it more moving forward that’s going to be really big.”
As players took the field for the second half, heavy rain doused the field, nearly eliminating both teams’ passing games in the third quarter.
“We got fired up when we saw the rain,” Taylor said. “We know they run the ball, and we love to run the ball, and it was gonna be a fist fight. Made it a little ugly which was fun.”
“It had a huge impact for both sides,” Rim of the World coach Joe Jurado said. “It took them out of stuff they like to do. Made it hard for us to do anything other than what we normally do.”
The rain continued through the third quarter, when both teams found the end zone, but the precipitation ceased at the start of the fourth where Ortiz and Montano again stood out.
Following a botched punt return that put the Scots on the Titans’ 30-yard line, Ortiz took the ball the remainder of the distance for his third touchdown of the game.
“He ran hard in these conditions,” Jurado said. “He took some shots – took a lot of shots, but he just kept going. … It’s why we can rely on him and I’m super proud of him.”
“I was really hoping for (300 yards),” Ortiz said. “I put it as a goal for this week.”
Montano again helped the Titans get within a score with just over three minutes remaining, setting up a touchdown with 77 yards passing on three completions.
Getting the ball back in the final minute, Grand Terrace faced a fourth-down scenario just past midfield with eight seconds remaining.
As the play ensued, Ortiz breached a hole at the line and sacked Montano to seal the victory for the Scots.
“I saw the hole open, and the running back didn’t look my way for that once,” Ortiz said, “so instead of trying to hit him I saw the quarterback and saw it wide open.”
Next week, Rim will look to continue its undefeated season on the road against Chaffey, while Grand Terrace will play a final nonleague tune-up at Colton.
Originally Published:
