If the Bonita Vista Barons looked just a wee bit glum on the sideline prior to last Friday’s non-league game against the Hilltop Lancers at Southwestern College, they had every right to be. Not only were the Barons — one of the Metro Conference’s perennial powerhouse teams — off to an uncharacteristic 0-5 start but, according to a television report, veteran head coach Carl Parrick’s wife Linda was suffering a setback in her ongoing battle with cancer.
“They gave her some flowers and all signed a card for her,” Parrick told a TV crew after the game.
They also gave her a win — the team’s long-awaited first of the season.
Greg McGhee and Felix Garcia spearheaded the victory by each scoring two touchdowns while place-kicker Nathan Drum drilled a 27-yard field goal.
The sparse crowd, a regular occurrence during intercession throughout the South Bay, was the only thing that marred the Barons’ win.
McGhee scored on a 10-yard run to cap Bonita Vista’s opening drive and Garcia capped the host’s second drive with a five-yard gallop into the end zone. Parrick’s crew then recovered the ensuing onside kick. Drum’s field goal gave the Barons a 16-8 lead.
But the Lancers (3-2) rallied on a 28-yard scoring pass from Omar Hernandez to Greg Allen to halve the BV lead to 16-8 after Daniel Sandoval caught a two-point conversion pass.
But the Barons put the game away with the only two touchdowns in the second half. Garcia scored on a 26-yard run in the third quarter to make the score 22-8 after a missed extra point. McGhee broke away for a 54-yard scoring run in the final quarter for the final score of the game.
The win was a key one for the Barons as Hilltop is in the same Division II playoff division.
Both teams wore pink wristbands in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Hernandez completed five of 11 passes for 98 yards. Bonita Vista limited the Lancers to 81 yards on 25 rushing attempts, with Hernandez collecting 42 yards on 13 carries and Trey Ventura gaining 36 yards on nine rushes. Mark McGuire led Hilltop receivers with two catches for 45 yards.
Luis Herrera led the Lancer defense with 12 tackles. Ryan Taylor blocked a field goal attempt while Jason Jasmund recovered a fumble.
The Barons will now attempt to make it two wins in a row when they host Mater Dei Catholic (1-5) in Friday’s Mesa League opener. The Crusaders are coming off a 42-7 loss at Olympian, a team Bonita Vista lost to 23-21 earlier this season.
Hilltop now faces Montgomery (3-2) in another road game as those two teams pair up in a non-league match-up.
