Despite a one-sided 42-7 home loss to Cathedral Catholic on Oct. 16, the Mission Bay football team still has the chance to close out strong with two more league matches left in the regular season.
The Dons, who improved to a 5-3 mark, took a 28-7 lead into halftime and did not look back by adding two more touchdowns in the second half while shutting down the Bucs, who dropped to a record of 4-4.
“It is important to get on the field with a team like that and try to match their rhythm to see where we stand,” said Mission Bay head coach Greg Tate.
Cathedral Catholic quarterback Koa Smith-Mayall finished the game with an efficient performance, going 9 for 11 and 180 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while Mission Bay quarterback Austin Stefl ended the night going 12 for 24 and 135 yards along with one touchdown and two interceptions.
Dons’ wide receiver Isaac Cook contributed with 88 receiving yards on four catches and one touchdown, while Bucs’ receiver Sean Lander scored the only touchdown for his team and 82 yards with two receptions.
“We are going to clean things up moving forward and come out with a better product on Friday,” Tate added.
Mission Bay plays again at home on Oct. 23 versus Lincoln, which is a team they did not face last season when the Bucs finished undefeated at 10-0 before being eliminated in the CIF San Diego Section Div. II playoff semifinals by San Diego High 33-19.
Mission Bay then travels to Point Loma in the regular season finale on Oct. 30 in hopes of propelling the team to a postseason run.
“These are opportunities that we welcome, so I expect the guys to keep playing hard and to take advantage of the opportunities,” said Tate. “We have a lot of returning guys. I think the biggest question mark going into this season was at quarterback, but for the most part I feel he has played up to par. It’s just about him continuing to get reps and raising his level of play to match the opponents.”
The most impressive win came versus University City on Sept. 11 when Mission Bay was trailing in the fourth quarter, but two interceptions by senior Jayden Marcelino, including a pick-six, turned the game around to give the Bucs a 20-17 victory.
