The Chaminade Eagles defeated the Hart Indians 28-10 to capture the CIFSS Division II Regional Championship Saturday night at College of the Canyons to advance to the Div. II State Bowl game next week.
The Eagles defense, anchored by seniors Jojo McIntosh and Rick Gamboa, bottled up the Indians offense for much of the night. Junior defensive end Joel Loth was a monster off the edge tonight, wreaking havoc in the Hart backfield and tallying four sacks.
Chaminade vs Hart: Full Game Highlight Mix
After a Hart fumble set the Eagles up with good field position, senior Cory Watkins capped it off with a short touchdown run to give Chaminade a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
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The Indians got on the board with a 32-yard field goal to cut the gap to 7-3. Both defenses continued to lay the wood and neither offense was able to generate much offense the rest of the half.
Chaminade led 7-3 at halftime.
Joel Loth: 2015 DE Post Game Interview
Hart began the second half by recovering an onside kick but the Eagles defense held firm and forced a punt.
The game turned when Chaminade quarterback and Miami commit Brad Kaaya linked up with Brayden Lenius on an amazing touchdown strike to give the Eagles a 13-3 advantage. The PAT was no good but the Eagles never looked back.
A big time play from Jordan Athey set the Eagles up deep in Hart territory again where Watkins rushed for his second score of the night. A successful two-point conversion run by Colorado commit Donovan Lee gave Chaminade a 21-3 lead late in the third quarter.
Chaminade junior Evan Yeager stepped up with a big interception to halt a potential Indians rally. A touchdown burst by speedster Kieren Yancy iced the game for the Eagles.
JoJo McIntosh: 2014 DB Post Game Interview
A late touchdown strike from Hart junior gun-slinger Brady White to Chase White cut the deficit to 28-10. Despite coming up short tonight, Hart had a great season and should be loaded again next year.
With the victory, the Eagles avenge an early season 55-54 overtime loss to Hart and improve to 13-2 in lieu of their CIF DIvision II State Bowl game against undefeated Enterprise (Redding) next Saturday at StubHub Center in Carson, CA.
