“I love to win!” sweat-soaked Pointer defender Nate Terzoli proclaimed as he and his teammates celebrated a victory over Christian High School last Friday night in his team’s Eastern League opener.

Terzoli, a linebacker and defensive end, had just played a part in sharply limiting the Patriot’s offense in the second half as the Pointers posted a 24-13 victory, improving their record to 4-3 (1-0 in league play).

And, while the Pointers’ performance wasn’t totally satisfactory, they did more than what was needed,

including intercepting four passes by the Patriots who couldn’t move the ball well on the ground. Pass pilferers included Canon Ogden, Romeo Carter, Ryan Burdine, and Brady Allen.

The Pointers were at their best on a brilliant drive that began with just 2:13 left in the second quarter after the Patriots had scored to tie the game. With good clock management by head coach Joel Allen and several well-called plays, the team drove downfield before Rocket Robinson scored from four yards out with just 20.2 seconds left on the clock.

This score gave the Pointers a 14-7 lead at the break after Burdine’s four-yard touchdown run in the first period opened the scoring.

Ogden’s third-quarter pass theft led to a 28-yard field goal by Aaron Lee for a 17-7 Pointer lead.

After Burdine’s fourth-period interception, Allen threw a long pass downfield where a leaping Lee beat two defenders for the ball and ran into the end zone for an apparent touchdown. But the score was disallowed because of a penalty. Moments after this, Dylan Upjohn took a handoff and raced 28 yards up the middle for the final Pointer score.

Later a pass from Brady to a wide-open receiver in the end zone was dropped before the Patriots scored again in the game’s final minute.

Every prep football head coach in the country strives to build improvement and consistency in his players including week-by-week during the season. After praising the effort of his teen players in a post-game talk, Allen reminded them there was work to do and mistakes to correct as league games and playoffs loom ahead.

“I’ll take not playing a perfect game and winning over playing a perfect game and losing all day long,” Allen said later. “We do have high standards and we spend a lot of time together practicing. When we don’t execute we all (players and coaches) know it. Sometimes there’s a gray area between knowing what to do and executing and we have to get to the point where our mind and execution are on par with each other.”

Terzoli’s observation?

“It was definitely a slow start for the boys,” Terzoli, a team leader and captain said, “So we had to re-group at halftime. Everybody got together and talked about it and I think we came out strong in the second half, still not our best but good enough to get it done. They (Christian High) came out and showed us a little bit more than we thought they would.

“Everything was under our control for sure,” Terzoli noted, “If we talk and communicate how we are supposed to everything flows smoothly and we get it done.

Terzoli has taken up a leadership role. “It’s something I’ve always had. I like to think of myself as a loud dude, very enthusiastic and keeps my boys in check. We got the ‘W,’ we’re 1-0 in league and that’s all that matters.”

The Pointers played one of the county’s longest-running rivalries yesterday (Oct. 5) hosting La Jolla High (4-2, 1-0.) The game was moved as a result of the referee shortage. Dating back decades, the once-annual battle was for “The Shoe,” a trophy long since vanished and rumored to be held at the home of a former Viking coach.

On Oct. 13 the Pointers welcome Mira Mesa in another league game. The Marauders (2-4, 0-1) scored 42 points but lost 48-42 to La Jolla in their only league game.

EXTRA POINTS

The Pointers brutalized San Diego High School in two games on Sept. 22. The junior varsity completed a 63-0 blowout before the varsity finished a 50-7 blitz of the Cavers. With the freshman team shutting out Bonita Vista 39-0 the three teams won by a combined score of 152-7 with the only score by the Cavers coming in the final minute of the varsity game.

The junior varsity team is now 3-2 after a 14-7 loss to Christian. The freshman team is 4-1 after a 35-20 win over Patrick Henry.

A trio of Pointer standouts all had 18th birthdays in recent days including Allen, Terzoli, and Lee.