SOUTHERN BLANKS JFK TO MOVE TO 3-0

By Jojo Santo Tomas

The Southern Dolphins ran their record to 3-0 in the ISA High School Football league with a 21-0 victory over the home-team John F. Kennedy Islanders on Friday at Ramsey Field.

Southern quarterback Ghesan Gaje tossed two first-half touchdown passes and scored a rushing touchdown. The 13-year-old freshman starter was barely visible behind his front five that won that battle of inches in the trenches, grinding out the necessary yard to put Gaje in the end zone.

Sophomore running back Kaden Cruz once again was the Tuninos’ workhorse, rushing eight times for 83 yards, almost all coming in the second half. He also pulled in a 15-yard pass from Gaje to get into the Islander red zone, setting up Gaje’s 17-yard strike to A.J. Dela Cruz with four minutes left in the first half.

Gaje’s first touchdown pass came on Southern’s opening drive. He ran a play-action to perfection and found sophomore receiver Nate Esteves all by himself. Esteves caught Gaje’s rainbow in stride and waltzed into the end zone untouched.

Gaje finished with six completions on 13 attempts for 62 yards. He was intercepted twice.

“I thank my line for doing all the work … and also my wide receivers for catching the balls that I throw to them,” said Gaje, who attends Notre Dame High School but plays for the Dolphins. “Overall, I think we did an OK job. We need to fix things and put in the work.”

Cruz said that although the Dolphins did OK, there is plenty to work and improve on. Still, he said he gave it his all on the field because “I know my teammates always try to do the same too. And our coaches.”

Although the Dolphins defense did its part to keep the dubious honor as the most penalized team in the league, it also stopped everything that JFK could muster. While Southern has put up 118 points in three games thus far, its defense has yet to allow an offensive touchdown.

The Islanders got as close as the 1-yard line on an array of screen passes and quarterback runs by RayTommy Kanemoto in the fourth quarter, Southern’s defense held when it counted. Damion Quinata and Rai Agustin stopped Kanemoto at the 1, and Mason Calvo – one of 12 Southern High seniors – put the initial hit on JFK’s goal-line running back Eric Fejeran for no gain and a turnover on downs.
The Islanders have yet to score a touchdown in its two games. JFK lost to the FD Friars in its season opener and had a bye last week.

Islanders coach Allen Blend said that his team is also young, with better games ahead. He was proud of the way they played tough until the end, and that he counted on his returnees on both sides of the ball to offer the team that occasional spark.

“We just want to continue to work with these players – a lot of them have never played football before – so it’s an uphill battle … but they are progressing,” he said. “We just want to stay positive and make sure we continue to work.”

JFK safety Vandahlei Mansapit had a monster game on defense with two interceptions and a league-high nine tackles.

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Quarter
Southern: 7-0 – Nate Esteves 20-yard pass from Ghesan Gaje (Dela Cruz kick)

2nd Quarter

Southern: 14-0 – AJ Dela Cruz 17-yard pass from Gaje (Dela Cruz kick)

3rd Quarter

Southern: 21-0 Gaje 1-yard run (Dela Cruz kick)

INDIVIDUAL STATS

PASSING

Southern: Gaje 6-13-2 62 yds 2 TD; JFK: Kanemoto 4-9-1 43 yds, Duenas 3-4-1 (-6) yds

RUSHING

Southern: K. Cruz 8-83, Acovera 6-34, Esteves 3-28, Gaje 3-19 (TD), Brub 1-9, Torres 1-4, Tablan 2-0, Jesus 1-(1); JFK: Kanemoto 7-31, Mansapit 2-22, Mohr 3-2, Santos 1-1, Fejeran 1-0

RECEIVING

Southern: Esteves 1-20 (TD), Dela Cruz 1-17 (TD), Tablan 1-16, K. Cruz 1-15, Brub 1-0, Torres 1-(-3); JFK: Mohr 3-40, Leiam Santos 3-2, Mansapit 1-(-5)

TOP TACKLES

Southern: Aguigui 4.5, Calvo 3.5, K. Cruz 3; JFK: Mansapit 9, R. Sablan 3, J. Perez 2.5

SACKS

Southern: Acovera, Taimanglo; JFK: Kanemoto

INTERCEPTIONS

Southern: Esteves, K. Cruz; JFK: Mansapit 2

PENALTIES

Southern: 11-100; JFK: 5-45

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