Granite Hills’ Third-Quarter Explosion Buries Los Alamitos, 35-7

Granite Hills wasted no time setting the tone, scoring twice in the opening quarter. On the opening possession, quarterback Zac Benitez connected with Jonah Hamilton to move the offense into scoring position before Gage Spalding capped the drive with a 25-yard touchdown run. The Eagles struck again shortly after when they blocked a rugby-style punt and took over at the Los Alamitos 8-yard line, with Benitez finding Manny Walker for a 5-yard score to make it 14-0.

The rest of the first half was far messier for Granite Hills’ offense — a bad snap, holding penalties, and a blocked punt of their own slowed things down — but the Eagles’ defense held firm. Ty Spencer and Jesse Wilhite both came up with interceptions, and Eurijah Schutza added a sack, helping Granite Hills carry a 14-0 lead into halftime despite the offensive hiccups.

The third quarter belonged entirely to Granite Hills. Benitez found Wilhite for a 15-yard touchdown to make it 21-0, then connected with Courtney “Nino” Miller-Thompson on a 74-yard touchdown strike down the sideline to push the lead to 28-0. Freshman quarterback Jeriah Searcy, in for Benitez, then handed the ball to Spalding, who broke two tackles and raced 69 yards for a touchdown — capping a 21-point quarter and making it 35-0 heading into the fourth.

Los Alamitos avoided the shutout in the fourth quarter when Elijah McDaniel connected with Ashton Gogue for a touchdown pass, with the extra point making it the final 35-7 margin.

Benitez finished 14 of 24 passing for 177 yards and three touchdowns to three different receivers. Miller-Thompson led all receivers with 5 catches for 106 yards, and Spalding needed just 9 carries to rack up 105 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, Cayden Phillips and Eurijah Schutza each recorded 10 tackles and a sack, while the Eagles totaled four sacks, eight tackles for loss, and three takeaways as a team.

The win improves Granite Hills to 3-1 and avenges a 49-42 loss to Los Alamitos a year ago, when Kamden Tillis rushed for 205 yards and three touchdowns for the Griffins. Los Alamitos falls to 0-5, extending a six-game losing streak dating back to last season.

Granite Hills returns home next Friday, Sept. 25, to host Cathedral Catholic (2-2) in a game with Open Division playoff implications. Los Alamitos gets extra time before its next matchup, traveling to San Juan Hills on October 2.