Gallery • 10 Photos

Emma Rosenberg

Senior Zach Frender stands focused and calm after the Giants score a touchdown in the third quarter to secure the lead.

As Friday night approached, it was obvious the game versus Petaluma would be an old-school, ground-and-pound-style football game, and it sure came to fruition. Petaluma utilized an old-school Wing-T offense, rushing the ball 51 times with only ten pass attempts all evening, and the Giants had similar success on the ground. After Redwood won the coin toss and deferred to the second half, the defense forced a quick punt to get the offense on the field. However, penalties and a botched snap derailed the Giants’ first drive of the game, giving the ball right back to the Trojans.
All game long, the Petaluma offense ran speed options, counters and power out of the Wing-T. Slowly they marched down the field, and the clock ticked well into the second quarter as Petaluma entered the red zone. With the ball at the ten-yard line, the Trojans ran a toss to the outside, but the ball was knocked loose. Senior Miles Harrison scooped it up and sprinted 90 yards the opposite way for a touchdown.
“I just saw the ball loose and guessed it would pop out that [direction]. Then I ran as hard as I could,” Harrison said.
Again in possession of the ball, now down 7-0, the Trojans slogged down the field, draining the clock while gaining consistent short yardage on the ground. Finally, they punched it in on a run play, but a missed extra point kept the Giants’ lead at 7-6. With just minutes left in the first half, the Redwood offense had only run six plays.
Junior Cooper Canon took a short kick a long way, giving the Giants great field position for the two-minute drill. Then, senior Sean Cunneen bounced an inside handoff to the outside for nearly 30 yards, setting up a chip-shot field goal that junior kicker William Suko nailed.
Despite the 10-7 halftime lead, the Giants were frustrated with their performance in the first half.
“We felt like we needed to get off the field on defense, they had the ball for so long that we never gave our offense a shot. So we wanted to control the possession in the second half,” Ralston said.
That seemed to help in the second half, as Redwood came out with explosive energy. Stubborn on running the ball, Cunneen got four carries on five plays on the first drive; he ran for 54 yards before crossing the goal line for a touchdown.
Once again, Petaluma responded by grinding down the field slowly, wearing down the Giants’ line and eventually bringing the score to 17-14.
After a long kickoff return by junior Dylan Mcgrath, the Giants were set up in prime position to extend their lead. With the ball on the 40-yard line, Cunneen again bounced outside, breaking a tackle and flying past defenders for his second touchdown of the evening.
Just a few minutes later, he did it again, this time from 75 yards out. On an outside zone, he outran the entire Trojan defense down the right sideline, giving the Giants a 31-14 cushion which would be the final score.
Cunneen finished the game with 218 rushing yards on just ten carries, and three impressive touchdowns. Defensively, Harrison shined, leading the team with 13.5 tackles as well as his scoop-and-score touchdown.
Senior quarterback Kody Vasquez only threw the ball nine times for 63 yards, but was more than content.
“If we can win the game by running the ball like that, and I don’t have to throw, I’ll take it every time,” Vasquez said.
The matchup with Petaluma marked the inaugural game of the Redwood Empire League. Next week, the Giants host Casa Grande in the homecoming game, Saturday at 2 p.m.