Sports
October 16, 2009 |
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Dragons crushed by Healdsburg 31-8
Rays Sullivan Jr. | Sonoma Valley Sun
After a competitive first quarter the Sonoma Dragons were unable to slow down their Sonoma County League opponent, the Healdsburg Greyhounds, last Friday night at Arnold Field, falling 31-8.
The Greyhounds had excellent field position most of the night, and almost immediately capitalized on their good fortune, scoring on their second drive following a short Sonoma punt to go ahead 7-0.
Senior Steven Murden started at quarterback in place of the injured Nate Swanson, and behind the outside running of Yahya Muslim the Dragons stayed in the contest until the late moments of the first half. The Dragons trailed only 14-0 before Healdsburg added a field goal right before halftime for a 17-0 advantage.
Muslim was able to escape outside the tackles throughout the first two periods, but turnovers and miscues prevented the Dragons from scoring in the first half. Muslim had another standout performance, rushing for 156 yards on 22 carries.
The Dragon loss puts Sonoma two games behind SCL leaders Windsor and Petaluma who have both started the SCL 2-0. The Dragons look to get into the SCL win column tonight against El Molino in Forestville. The Lions (0-2) dropped their SCL tilt against rival Analy last week 48-7.
Murden guided the Dragons deep into Greyhound territory to open the second half, but an errant sideline throw was picked off by Healdsburg’s Tanner Walker who returned the interception for 88 yards and a touchdown.
Undaunted, the Dragons resiliently marched downfield following the interception for their only score of the night, a three-yard burst by senior Mario Gomez. Murden connected with fellow senior Tyler Rose for a two-point conversion following the Gomez score. The Dragons were held under 50 yards passing for the second consecutive game.
While Healdsburg mixed the run and the pass, this week’s opponent El Molino had been known to try and pound opponents on the ground. However, the Dragons will have to keep an eye on receiver Joe Douglass who averages 91 yards a game receiving and has accounted for three scores this season.
Curiously, El Molino is 2-4 overall, but 0-3 at home.
SCL Standings
(as of October 15)
W L
Petaluma 2 0
Healdsburg 2 0
Windsor 1 0
Casa Grande 0 1
Analy 1 1
Sonoma 0 2
El Molino 0 2
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