South Tahoe High JV football team persists to upset rival truckee

South Tahoe High School (STHS) Junior Varsity (JV) team wins 35-34 against longtime rival Truckee High School! At the conclusion of a challenging season for the hardworking team, STHS JV staged a major upset on the road against their rivals Truckee HS, a team that was undefeated in conference play before the game with South Tahoe on Saturday, October 22.

The game promised to be a daunting task for STHS playing on the road and in the cold against a team with a much better record. The game was off to a rough start for the Vikings against the heavily favored Truckee team. But near the end of the first quarter, it looked like the tide might be starting to turn.

The Vikings were trailing 14-0 with a daunting 4th down and 13 to go. Quarterback Kayden Morales completed a pass to wide receiver Brody DeFranco for a catch and run of 33 yards, getting the ball to the Truckee 2-yard line. Adrian Smith converted on the next play with a 2-yard rushing touchdown, and Luis Salas made the extra point. It was then 14-7 Truckee.

The Vikings held Truckee on defense, got the ball back, and strung together multiple rushing plays, mainly by Jayden Cenidoza, with Cenidoza rushing in an 18-yard touchdown. The extra point was made by Luis Salas, tying the game at 14-14. Truckee, however, answered big with multiple scores, getting their lead to 26-14. This was Tahoe’s chance to show the team’s true grit.

Tahoe drove down and scored on a 10-yard rushing touchdown by Logan Debaun, with 1:14 left in the half, making the score 26-21. Truckee quickly answered by driving down to the Vikings’ end zone and had four shots at goal in a brief 14-second period as the clock was ticking down. Truckee got a 4th and goal chance with one second remaining on the clock in the half and converted a TD to take the lead at halftime: 34-21.

The clock-keeping at the end of the half drew the ire of the Vikings' fans, as they thought the clock should have run out after the 3rd down. But the Tahoe team was not discouraged and came back ready to play hard after halftime. And though down 34-21 to start the third quarter, the Vikings pulled together an impressive second-half comeback against their rivals.

In the third quarter, Bryson Farokhpour caught his lone but essential reception of the game for a 28-yard touchdown; the Vikings missed the extra point but brought the score to 34-27.

In the fourth quarter, Tahoe drove down and scored on a 31-yard receiving touchdown from quarterback Kayden Morales to Logan Debaun to bring the game score to a one-point differential: 34-33.

In a gutsy call by Coach Doug Russel, the Vikings went for the two-point conversion to attempt to take the lead instead of settling for the extra-point kick to tie the game. The Vikings hit pay dirt again, as another pass was completed from Kayden Morales to Logan Debaun for a two-point conversion that put the Vikings in the lead for the first time all game. It was 35-34 Vikings, with 5:36 remaining in the game.

Truckee drove down the field trying to stage a comeback, but it was cut short when, with a little over two minutes to go in the game, Logan Debaun intercepted a pass by the Truckee QB to seal the win. The Vikings outscored their rivals 14-0 in the second half and held Truckee HS to zero points in the second half after giving up 34 points in the first half. The defense really stepped up with notable line play from Logan Kelso, Tanner Truscott, Ryder Bruner, and a solid secondary effort from Brody DeFranco and Logan Debaun, along with a great team effort from the rest of the defense. Brody DeFranco led both teams on defense with 14 tackles. In addition, the Vikings' defense secured clutch turnovers with a fumble recovery by Alex Rodriguez and an interception by Logan Debaun.

The Vikings exhibited a balanced offense behind the legs of running back Jayden Cenidoza and the arm of quarterback Kayden Morales. Jayden Cenidoza led the Vikings' rushing attack with 139 yards, while Brody DeFranco led the receiving effort with 74 yards. Kayden Morales passed for two touchdowns, while Adrian Smith, Jayden Cenidoza, and Logan Debaun each had a rushing touchdown.

With this win, the team finished the game and the season in "Victory Formation." And that is where the real story likely starts. This all-freshman JV team has faced some adversity this season (with an early season game and practices lost due to smoke from the Mosquito Fire, a road game played without many players due to illness, and competing against teams with older players every week). However, the last two games prior to this win were close, one-score games. This Vikings team got better every week, stuck together, and showed they know how to compete. This team effort was truly evident in this big, season-ending upset on the road versus Truckee.

This generation of Viking football has strong momentum heading into the future, which is clearly bright.

-_Story Provided