Trojans Thump Titans, 66-36

It was a backyard brawl from the start, but after trading punches with the visiting Titans throughout the first half, Lely's Trojans proved to be the toughest kids on the block, routing cross-town rival Golden Gate 66-36 on a pleasant summer evening. 

“This is a big rivalry game," said Ben Hammer, Lely head coach. "A lot of excitement. The kids all know each other. Our kids did a nice job executing. They did a great job on everything. They have some super dangerous athletes.” 

The Trojans took the lead for good with 5:07 to go in the second quarter when they scored to go up 24-17. Golden Gate answered with 1:39 left in the half to trim the lead to 24-23. By 8:17 in the third quarter, the Trojans were up 36-23 and never looked back. Hammer said his young squad was mistake-prone in the early going. 

"We just stopped making mental mistakes,” Hammer said. "We're a very young team, specifically defensively. Golden Gate had a good plan. They've got a couple of really, really special athletes. And so we kind of shot ourselves in the foot a couple times at the beginning of the game. We just stopped doing that in the second half and played hard. We still gave up some big plays. We'll continue to work to get better, but I'm super proud of our kids.” 

Sophomore running back Nino Joseph continues to impress. He rushed for 200 yards and scored five times against Golden Gate. 

"Obviously, Nino is Nino,” Hammer said of his star running back. Hammer also had positive words for Nino’s running mate Ty Collins. Both running backs are well under 6’, but both pack a big punch and use their compact size to their advantage, ducking behind blockers, slipping through tackles, and dishing out punishment that belies their lack of prototypical size. "Ty Collins, he's kind of assumed a little bit of Gage Rice's role. We can't wait to get Gage back and have two of those guys. He kind of does everything. He's great on special teams. He goes a million miles an hour all the time. He's great to have on the football field. I love him to death. He loves kicking the ball himself and then running down and making the tackle on the kickoff.” 

Lely’s leading receiver, senior Gage Rice, is recovering from a lingering hip problem. Hammer is hoping to have Rice back on the field in several weeks. Hammer also singled out receiver Zephaniah Diamond and quarterback Carter Quinn for praise. He also liked the play of his offensive and defensive fronts. 

"I thought our offensive line played really well,” Hammer said. "I thought our defensive front seven played really well. We'll have to watch the film. Zephaniah Diamond seemed to play really well as well. Carter Quinn played really solid again. He did what we asked him to do. He makes good decisions. He's calm, cool and collected.” 

Quinn has yet to throw an interception this season. An apparent interception was waived off Friday night. 

“If it wasn’t for that defensive interference,” Hammer said, “that might have been a touchdown pass.” 

Hammer’s defensive front is a collection of tough guys who love to hit and make plays. They got a huge shot in the arm when senior leaders Ivan Cisneros and Wally Monpremier returned to action for the first time this season.  Both players were making plays all over the field in their debuts. 

The Trojans (1-1) travel to Gulf Coast (0-2) on Sept. 6 for a 7:30 start. The Sharks have stumbled out of the blocks with losses to Charlotte (27-6) and Barrow (36-21). 

"Monday, we're going to go to practice and continue getting better,” Hammer said. "What we talk about isn't anything fake. What we do, we're going to get one percent better every day. Every game is a Super Bowl. We haven't looked ahead. We haven't looked behind. Now, full focus goes on Gulf Coast."