The Meadows starts fast, holds off Calvary Chapel

His team never trailed on its way to winning its Class 2A Southern League opener Friday.

But The Meadows football coach Frank DeSantis wasn’t pleased with his team’s 24-6 victory over visiting Calvary Chapel.

After jumping to a 17-0 first-quarter lead, the Mustangs failed to score again until the fourth. They committed three turnovers and had a punt blocked, enabling the Lions to pull within 17-6 late in the third quarter.

“We didn’t play with any emotion,” DeSantis said. “There was nothing great about our game tonight.”

Except for running back Pat Kenny. The senior carried 22 times for 183 yards and two touchdowns, scoring on runs of 1 and 2 yards in the first quarter.

“We got the win; that’s all that matters,” Kenny said. “It was mostly coming together and knowing we had to step up in the end.”

The teams combined for seven turnovers and neither surpassed 60 yards passing.

The Meadows (3-1, 1-0) had 239 yards of offense to 130 for Calvary Chapel (1-2, 0-1).

“We’ve got to learn how to convert turnovers,” said Calvary Chapel coach Cliff Frazier, whose team is playing its first season at the 11-man level. “We haven’t done that well.”

The lone score for the Lions came when Cody Taylor scrambled for a 6-yard touchdown run with 2:39 left in the third quarter.

Taylor, a sophomore quarterback, carried 12 times for 43 yards and completed 6-of-15 passes for 55 yards with one interception.

After throwing for five touchdowns in a 46-26 win over Chadwick School on Sept. 12, The Meadows' freshman quarterback Gerard Martinez struggled Friday. He was 6 of 26 for 60 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions. His 8-yard scoring strike to Archie Rufty with 10:02 remaining gave the Mustangs a 24-6 lead.

In the end, play at the line of scrimmage meant all the difference for Kenny and The Meadows, DeSantis said.

“It all starts with the line,” DeSantis said. “When the line does well, he does well.”