Mar Vista Mariners 55, Southwest (SD) 8

Mar Vista (6-1) cruises through Southwest (0-7) beating them 55-8 to stay undefeated at home and put them in great position before league play.

The Mariners with a school record of 35 points in the first quarter did with big plays and short drives. By the 5:36 mark in the first quarter, Mar Vista had already put up 28 points.

The first two touchdowns were scored within two minutes of the game. The opening drive had Kahlil Spruill take three rushes for 76 yards and a touchdown. The Raiders first play on the ensuing drive ended with Noah Berry intercepting the ball and returning it to the Southwest 8 yard-line. It only took Mar Vista one play to score on a Michael Wilson to Diego Gonzalez hookup.

They kept the pace of touchdowns going as Khalil Spruill took a sweep 39 yards for a touchdown on the first play of their third drive. The home team would get the ball back after a turnover on downs and capitalize with a Jacob Hinojosa 3-yard touchdown. Michael Wilson would cap the quarter off with his second touchdown on his second completion of the game this time finding Alejandro Sosa for a 26-yard touchdown. Mar Vista scored five touchdowns in their first 15 plays of the game.

The landslide victory helps keep the Mariners atop in the Division IV rankings with league foe the Mater Dei Crusaders (6-1). The Metro-South Bay League could possibly have the top two teams in Div. IV for the first time in league history. We will have a better idea in three weeks after Mar Vista plays Mater Dei, a team they haven’t beat in six attempts, in the last game of the season.

Southwest, on the other hand, has a big mountain to climb. Notice, I didn’t say hill. But there are a couple great things going for this program. First is Head Coach Paco Silva, an Alumnus, bringing back old traditions of the Raider way. The first-year head coach has seemed to have found a level of respect with his players through gameday meals, “helping to create a brotherhood and family environment between the players and coaches,” said Silva. The next thing that Southwest have going for them is suiting up 17 sophomores accounting for more than half their team. After two years of varsity experience under their belt, the core group of players along with Silva has a great shot of making the playoffs.        

In Week 9, Southwest will try their luck against the Montgomery Aztecs (0-7) in the Metro-Mesa League opener.  Mar Vista will face off with the Sweetwater Red Devils (1-6) in the Metro-South Bay League opener.

PREVIEW

The Southwest Raiders (0-6) clash with cross-town rival the Mar Vista Mariners (5-1) in the 36th Annual Bell Game.

In the last decade, the Mariners have controlled the series taking the Bell home eight out of the last 10 games with Mar Vista winning the last 7 in a row. 

Head Coach Tyler Arciaga and the Mariners are playing their best ball of late, “our keys getting off to a 5-1 start is our ability of different kids to step up in different games,” Arciaga replied. “We had several skill position players, including QB Michael Wilson and RB/WR Noah Berry, step up to the challenge.”

The success on offense has come from the ground attack averaging more than 230 yards per game. It has been impressive because the Mariners have compiled more than 80 percent of their offense on the ground without their star back Khalil Spruill. “Spruill’s ankle is doing a lot better. He hasn’t done cardio in about 5 to 6 weeks, so getting him back in game shape is key for us,” Arciaga said.  

The Raider’s Paco Silva is looking for his first win in his first year as head coach. It will be difficult to accomplish with the Mariners playing well at home. Arciaga contributed the success at home to, “our fans support and the fairly intimate atmosphere where the fans a pretty close to the action.”

You will be able to see who takes the Bell home on the Prep Pigksin Report Friday night at 10:30 PM.