From the first play of the game, it was clear that Friday’s East Valley quarterfinal game between Bishop and Aquinas was going to be a hard-hitting affair. The Broncos, however, gave back everything they got, punishing the Falcons with a 33-11 win. Photo by Greg Lippincott

By Keith Rainville
Sports Editor

11-27-2007

The Broncos football team is moving on to the East Valley Division’s semifinals after demolishing Aquinas on Friday night, 33-11. A tight game at the half turned into a laugher when Bishop exploded for 26 unanswered
points. The Broncos pushed the Falcons around all game long, and got revenge for last year’s playoff loss at Aquinas.

Bishop knew it needed to make the most of its chances against a ball-control oriented opponent on Friday night. And in the second half, the Broncos did just that, converting their first four possessions into touchdowns.
The big win moved the
Broncos crush Falcons, 33-11
team into a semifinals matchup with 12-0 Citrus Hills on Saturday night. Bishop will travel to Perris (just south of Riverside) for the 7 p.m. game.
Last year, the Falcons were able to control the line of scrimmage
and use repetitive running plays to score an early touchdown
and run out the clock. This year, the Broncos got physical on the opening drive and stuffed Aquinas with a three-and-out, setting the tone for the game.

Brandon Griffiths drags a would-be tackler into the end zone with him as Bishop takes a 7-0 lead on Friday night. The Broncos ran away with the quarterfinals matchup, pummeling Aquinas 33-11. Photo by Keith Rainville

After a poor punt, the offense took over on its own 49-yard line and mounted a drive. Brandon Griffiths pounded up the middle for 16 yards to the Aquinas 35-yard line. A sweep right by Nick Salas moved the chains. Two more runs by Griffiths and Salas set up a first down at the Aquinas 11-yard line. Unfortunately the drive stalled and the field goal attempt was just wide right.
The Falcons used their running
attack to move the ball to the Bishop 38-yard line on the ensuing drive, running the clock out on the first quarter. Bishop’s Kevin LaRue came up with a big hit on second down, and the Bishop D line held strong on third-and-six. A pair of illegal procedure penalties forced Aquinas to punt, ending the threat.
The Broncos moved the ball from the 13-yard line to the 44, but the drive stalled, forcing a punt. Aquinas went three-and-out on its next possession, and then the two teams traded punts as time ran down in the first half.
With a little more than 4 minutes left in the second quarter,
Bishop got the big break it needed to get untracked. The Falcons tried a pass on first down from their own 35-yard line. Good pressure from Drew Blumberg on a blitz and a high hand by Stephen Puls at the line forced an errant throw that safety
Salas camped under for the interception. Salas caught the ball on the far sideline, cut across field and sprinted down the near line all the way to the Falcons 10.
The Broncos offense immediately
converted the turnover into 7 big points, feeding Griffiths a pair of handoffs. On the second run, the senior swept left into a big hole for an easy TD scamper. With 3:22 left in the half, Bishop took a 7-0 lead.
Aquinas was able to get 3 points back on an effective drive from its own 20-yard line. A trick play with 22 seconds left allowed a receiver to sneak to the sidelines and get open for a 14-yard gain to the Bishop 5. Aquinas kicked the field goal as time expired for a 7-3 halftime score.
Coming out of the locker room, the Broncos found a little of the second-half magic that they’ve used so many times this season. Bishop scored on its first touch of the second half as Jiovanni Santana caught the Aquinas kickoff in stride and blasted up the right sideline. Santana ran untouched thanks to great blocking, and 95 yards and 13 seconds later Bishop was up 14-3.
The big play crushed the Falcons. Showing none of the resiliency and ability to deal with adversity that the Broncos have displayed in the last several
games, Aquinas shut down after the score.
The Broncos could taste the win and got right after it. The Bishop D stuffed Aquinas forcing
a three-and-out and a bad punt to boot. The offense took over on the Falcons 33-yard line and a quarterback draw by Drew Blumberg set up third and short. Salas took a ball off left tackle for a 19-yard gain, running over defenders on his way. Blumberg then blasted up the middle again and gained the goal line but lost the ball. Senior tailback Jacob Poirier was following
the play and sprinted into the back of the end zone to dive on the loose ball for another
Bishop TD. With 7:40 left in the third quarter, Bishop took a 20-3 lead.
The Broncos continued to poor on the hits, forcing a fourth-and-six from the 50-yard line. With time running out on their season, the Falcons went for it on fourth down, but Puls came through with the big sack, dropping the QB for a 10-yard loss.
The Broncos took over on downs and wasted no time driving
the point home. With Frank Shoshone and the big offensive line leading the way, Salas ran right up the gut through a big hole and sprinted 45 yards for the score. Bishop took a commanding
27-3 lead.
The Falcons were able to mount a slow drive that ran the clock into the fourth quarter and moved the ball to the Bishop goal line. But like last week, with a team on its 1-yard line, the Broncos defense came through with a great stand. An illegal procedure moved the Falcons back 5 yards and then a Salas sack, blitzing off the right corner, ended the threat. An incomplete pass by Aquinas turned the ball back over to Bishop on downs.
On the next play, Salas took a handoff through a hole on the right side of the line and sprinted
96 yards for a TD. With a 33-3 lead, Bishop head coach Bill Egan was able to get many deserving players into the game. The final score was 33-11 and Bishop advanced to the semifinals.
Besides physically controlling
the game, the Broncos’ emotional edge was clearly on display Friday night. After playing
an entire season of close games hinging on one-possession
leads, this post-season Bishop has been able to deal with the pressure and adversity of the playoffs. When Desert Hot Springs took the opening kickoff in for a score last week, the Broncos battled hard for 40 more minutes and finally scored the go-ahead touchdown. Against Aquinas the team fought through a tough first half and then got its big break on the kickoff return. The Falcons weren’t able to stay energized, and the Broncos then ran rough-shod over them.