The St. John Bosco Braves overpowered the Tesoro Titans 38-17 on a frigid night in Bellflower to advance in the Pac 5 playoffs. The Braves will face Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks) next week.
Both teams settled for field goals early. With the game tied 3-3, the Braves took the lead on 7-yard touchdown run by Darren Walker.
Tesoro answered with an explosive 57-yard touchdown burst from senior running back Nate Tago.
St. John Bosco sophomore quarterback Josh Rosen connected with junior running back Lonell Woodhouse on a 22-yard touchdown pass to give the Braves a 17-10 advantage.
The Titans equalized before the half on 21-yard pitch and catch from senior quarterback Matt Adam to Brett Perry.
The second half was dominated by St. John Bosco. The Braves defense, led by standout junior defensive back Naijel Hale, shut down the Tesoro offense.
On offense, the Braves received solid contributions from junior running back Jaleel Wadood. The backs found a lot of running room behind Bosco’s powerful offensive line anchored by USC commit Nico Falah and junior Damien “Big” Mama.
The Braves took a 24-17 lead on a 6-yard rushing touchdown from Woodhouse.
Rosen extended the lead with a 10-yard touchdown strike to Robert Caggiano. Rosen capped off the night with another short touchdown pass to Woodhouse to give the Braves an impressive 38-17 victory.
