PREP FOOTBALL 2016: Analy ends contest early in mismatch against Trojans

The result this year was a predictable 55-7 Analy football domination Friday night at Petaluma’s Steve Ellison Field.|

Petaluma and Analy high school football teams were evenly matched - last year.

Analy returned almost all its key players from the team that won the Sonoma County League championship last season. Petaluma returned almost none of the key players from the team that took Analy to the last second before losing the SCL championship.

The result this year was a predictable 55-7 Analy domination Friday night at Petaluma’s Steve Ellison Field.

It took just 1 minute and 19 seconds for Friday’s contest to be over. That is how long it took Tiger quarterback Jack Newman to pass Analy 62 yards for its first touchdown. The score came on a 10-yard connection from the quarterback to to Spencer Vogel.

By the end of the first quarter, the score was 27-0, and by the end of the half had grown to 48-0. Analy scored on seven of eight possessions in the first half, with the only miss coming after Brenden Medina had replaced Newman at quarterback.

Playing only in the first half, and not all of that, Newman completed 18 of 24 pases for 228 yards and five touchdowns. The majority of his completions came on timed mid-range outs and slants with many of his throws leaving his hand before his receivers made their cuts.

Petaluma had no answer.

Analy was almost as dominant on the defensive side of the football.

On each of its first five possessions, Petaluma went three plays and punted, and on its sixth, it fumbled. It wasn’t until their final possession of the half that the Trojans managed a first down. That came on an impressive 27-yard sprint by Dominic Christobal, who is emerging as a legitimate long-gain ball carrier for the Trojans. He earned 75 yards in 12 carries.

Petaluma’s plan to slow the Analy offense by keeping the ball away from the Tigers was foiled by the aggressive Tiger linebackers, who spent most of the first half camped out in the Trojan backfield. At times, they seemed know where the ball was headed even before the hand off from quarterback Justin Wolbert.

Things were better for Petaluma in the second half.

Playing against a mix of first liners and reserves, the Trojans put together an impressive 80-yard march that consumed most of the running-clock third period and ended early in the fourth quarter with Connor Richardson pushing in from the 1-yard line. Christobal sparked the drive with a 27-yard burst that took the ball into Tiger territory for one of the few times all evening. The drive was helped along by a clutch fourth-down pass completion from Wolbert to Robert Miller.

Thomas De Jong added the extra point boot, and the Trojans were on the board.

Despite suffering their fourth straight defeat, the Trojans and their coaches remain upbeat, but practical.

“We have good kids and they’re learning,” said Petaluma coach Rick Krist. “We have some really good practices. They haven’t given up. We’re still learning.”

Analy won a well-played junior varsity game, 20-10, with the game-clinching touchdown coming on a scoring pass-interception return midway through the fourth quarter.

Petaluma was driving as the game ended, pushing to the Analy 4-yard line before turning the ball over on downs.

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