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Murrieta Mesa football tops Northwood to reach CIF-SS Division 6 semifinals

November 16, 2024

Murrieta Mesa’s Dez’mun Franklin tries to evade a Northwood defender during a CIF Southern Section Division 6 quarterfinal on Friday night at Murrieta Mesa High. Murrieta Mesa won, 19-10. (Photo by Nick Koon, Contributing Photographer)

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MURRIETA — Murrieta Mesa’s football team is returning to the CIF-Southern Section Division 6 semifinals for the second consecutive year, but Coach Oscar McBride wasn’t smiling Friday night.

Oh, he most certainly is proud of the Rams’ achievement. But the effort and execution in a 19-10 victory over Northwood, in his opinion, left much to be desired.

Alex Krishan kicked four field goals to bail out the Rams, whose seven trips deep into Northwood territory were blunted by penalties and netted only one touchdown, Daniel Richie’s 1-yard leap with 1:50 left in the second quarter. Krishan connected twice from 29 yards, and added a 42-yarder and a 25-yarder to propel Murrieta Mesa (8-4) into next week’s matchup at St. Francis in La Cañada Flintridge. St. Francis topped Muir, 28-27, on Friday.

“I’m really not happy,” McBride glowered. “We left probably five touchdowns down here. Thank God for our kicker, Alex. Outstanding player, phenomenal character. He’s a stud.”

The numbers, though, will return a smile to McBride’s face.

The hosts amassed 441 yards in offense against a Timberwolves squad that had limited opponents to an average of 226.5 yards per game. And the Murrieta Mesa defense limited Northwood to 154 totals yards, which included four sacks of quarterback Gavin Lounsbury for 34 yards in losses. The Rams surrendered three first downs in the second half.

But the penalty bug hit Murrieta Mesa often. The Rams were flagged 20 times for 206 yards, including four dead-ball personal foul penalties after a play was over.

“I think it was anxiety,” McBride said about the mental lapses. “They controlled the tempo in the first half, and usually we control the tempo. They got us out of our element by slowing the game down.

“We’re an up-tempo, fast-paced team. I really don’t want to go back to the huddle. I don’t want to give them time to think about the mistake that was just made. I want them to get on the ball and play. Next play … next play.”

Once the Rams found their rhythm, they were difficult to stop – until the penalty flags flew. Quarterback Trey Gamble Jr. completed 20 of 28 passes for 316 yards. Dez’mun Franklin used his quickness to snag six passes for 123 yards. Cooper Murphy had a 65-yard catch-and-and run among his four receptions or 86 yards.

“This team just beat us. I’m not going to make excuses. They beat us,” Northwood coach JC Clarke said. The Timberwolves, who missed the playoffs in 2023 after winning the Division 8 title in 2022 and the Division 11 crown in 2021, finish their season with a 9-3 record.

Lounsbury’s strong arm kept Northwood in the game after the Rams took a 13-3 lead with 1:50 to play in the half. He threaded a perfect pass over the secondary that Issac Kwon hauled in for a 39-yard touchdown with 39 seconds to play, cutting the lead to 13-10.

But Northwood never mounted a threat in the second half. Lounsbury finished with 13 completions for 174 yards. Kwon caught six passes for 94 yards.

Murrieta Mesa football tops Northwood to reach CIF-SS Division 6 semifinals Orange County Register

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Murrieta Mesa football tops Northwood to reach CIF-SS Division 6 semifinals

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