Week in Sports
By Gideon Rubin
The more things change, the more they seem to stay the same for Cathedral Catholic.
The Dons, who are seeking their sixth consecutive San Diego Section Division III title with a new-look team after some heavy graduation losses, opened their football season with a 35-6 trouncing of Steele Canyon in a nonleague game on Aug. 31.
The victory extended the Dons winning streak going back to last season to 11 games.
A familiar face led the way for the Dons, with third-year quarterback Garrett Bogart completing 11 of 18 pass attempts for 236 yards with three touchdowns.
The Dons were led defensively by Taylor Esoldi, who had three-and-a-half sacks and eight tackles, and Toshaun Poumele, who had 11 tackles. Xavier Ulutu and Tom Crabtree each contributed nine tackles.
Santa Fe Christian started strong but the Eagles couldn’t stop Capistrano Valley’s frantic fourth quarter rally in a 41-39 loss in a nonleague opener for both teams.
The Eagles opened up a 26-7 lead going into halftime and took a 33-20 lead into the fourth quarter, but they were outscored 21-6 the rest of the way.
Eagles quarterback Hunter Vaccaro completed 4 of 9 pass attempts for 98 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also led the Eagles ground game, rushing for 112 yards on 13 carries.
Tony Miro rushed for 48 yards on 13 carries and caught three passes for 27 yards. He combined for three touchdowns.
Tony Zarubin led the Eagles defensively with 10 tackles and two sacks, and Blain Weeks contributed six tackles and two sacks.
Torrey Pines experienced a 22-7 loss to San Pasqual in a nonleague opener for both teams on Aug. 31.
Falcons quarterback Mike Ward completed 15 of 34 pass attempts for 172 yards.
Billy Maggs rushed for 58 yards on 11 carries, and Dwayne Hines carried three times for 23 yards and scored the Falcons’ only touchdown of the game.
Golf:
Canyon Crest Academy (women) lost to Mission Vista 228-209 in a nonleague match on a nine-hole par-36 course at San Luis Rey Downs Golf Course on Aug. 28.
Lauren Barth shot a 42 to lead the Ravens, and Madison Ma added a 45.
Torrey Pines defeated Cathedral Catholic 190-254 in a nonleague opener for both teams on Aug. 29.
Volleyball:
San Diego Jewish Academy lost to Julian 3-1 (25-21, 16-25, 9-25, 10-25) in a nonleague match on Aug. 30.
The Lions fell to 1-1 overall for the season.
Notes:
•Former Cathedral Catholic two-sport standout Tyler Gaffney
decided to forgo his last year of eligibility at Stanford, signing a professional baseball contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates earlier this summer.
Gaffney, a record-setting San Diego County rusher, was drafted by the Pirates in the 24th round of this year’s draft.
He rushed for 449 yards and scored seven touchdowns for the Stanford football team his junior year, concluding his Cardinal career with an appearance in the Fiesta Bowl.
He hit .245 with two home runs and 17 RBI last season after garnering All-Pacific 10 honorable mentions his freshman and sophomore years.
Gaffney established himself as one of the most distinguished prep athletes in recent Carmel Valley history, ushering in the Dons’ era of football dominance.
He led the Dons to their first two of its five consecutive San Diego Section Division III football titles in 2007 and 2008 and its first Division II state championship (2008). Gaffney set multiple San Diego County football records including most points scored in a career (598), single season rushing (2,866) and career rushing (5,547).
He earned 10 varsity letters during his Dons career (four in football, three in baseball, two in basketball and one in track).
•
Recent Torrey Pines grad Luc Rennie
signed with the Baltimore Orioles, who drafted him in the in 16th round.
Rennie, a 6-foot-2 200-pound power pitcher with great command, is coming off a dominant senior year for the Falcons. He was 9-1 with a 0.89 ERA, striking out 73 batters and allowing 41 hits and 10 walks in 70 2/3 innings.
•Former major leaguer Kirk McCaskill will coach the Torrey Pines baseball team.
The Canadian-born McCaskill spent the first seven years of his 11-year big league pitching career with the California Angels.
He also played professional hockey for a farm team of the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets.
McCaskill replaces Matt Chess.
•
Torrey Pines’ girls volleyball team,
which last season won the San Diego Section Division I championship, is the top ranked team in the nation according to a PrepVolleyball.com preseason poll.