Paloma Valley Storms Back to Knock Off Moreno Valley in OT

Phillip Hauser (82) signals touchdown as RJ Benz falls into the end zone with the winning score in overtime.

As impressive as Paloma Valley High School's football team was in outscoring opponents 181-32 the first three weeks of the season, Wildcats coach Bert Esposito wanted to see what his team would do when the pressure was on.

Friday night, he found out -- getting perhaps a bit more than he bargained for.

Trailing by two touchdowns with eight minutes left in the game, the Wildcats rallied to take visiting Moreno Valley to overtime. In that extra period, quarterback Brent Boehm threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to RJ Benz and the Paloma Valley defense made its best stand of the night, resulting in a wild 41-35 win for the Wildcats.

"We needed a fight, and I knew we were going to get one tonight," said Esposito, whose team remains unbeaten at 4-0. "Overcoming adversity ... we needed this."

From the beginning, there was no doubt that Moreno Valley (2-1) was going to give the Wildcats all they could handle.

First, the visiting Vikings had a size advantage on the line, featuring the likes of 6-foot-4, 305-pound offensive tackle and defensive end Christian Afereti. Second, they had considerable success running the ball outside because of the speed of quarterback Justice Tyler (173 yards rushing) and halfback Amos Murphy (136 yards).

Paloma Valley held on to a 14-7 lead at halftime, but Moreno Valley took the lead late in the third quarter and appeared to have the game in hand with 8:13 left when Tyler ran 2 yards for a touchdown and a 35-21 Vikings lead. Even worse, Paloma Valley's No. 1 running back, Demarco Prewitt (right), was on the sidelines with a twisted ankle after rushing for 85 yards and two touchdowns.

But anyone who knows the offensive firepower of the Wildcats realizes they almost always have a chance to fight back -- especially the players.

"We knew we could come back," said Benz, who caught 5 passes for 50 yards, including the game-winner. "The whole time, we thought, 'We're still in this game.' "

The comeback began on the next possession, when Paloma Valley drove from its own 45-yard line to the Moreno Valley 12, where Boehm hit Michael Valencia with a pass in the left corner of the end zone. Valencia was able to haul in the pass and keep his feet in bounds for the touchdown. Derek Davis' PAT kick brought the Wildcats to within a touchdown at 35-28.

Paloma's defense, which had been pushed around by the bigger Vikings for much of the night, then rose to the occasion. Forcing Moreno Valley into a fourth-and-4 situation near midfield, the Wildcats took over on downs after linemen Kre Webb and Ashton Morgan sacked Tyler for a five-yard loss.

On the very next play, Valencia made a leaping catch of a Boehm pass at midfield (below) and raced into the end zone for a 65-yard tochdown pass play. Seconds later, the game was tied at 35 with 2:27 remaining.

"That's been a clutch play for us all season," said Valencia, who caught 6 passes for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns and had a big fumble recovery on defense. "I knew our line would step up against the big guys. We knew there would be overtime, so coach just told us, 'Don't do anything stupid.' "

Overtime in nonleague games is not mandatory but can be played if both coaches agree to that arrangement before the game. Knowing he and Moreno Valley coach Ted Wadkins had made such an agreement, Esposito felt good about his team's chances of sending the game to OT.

Moreno Valley attempted one final frantic drive to pull out a victory in regulation, but turned the ball over on downs at the Paloma Valley 7. Tyler spiked the ball to stop the clock with three seconds left, apparently thinking it was third down and the Vikings could attempt a field goal. After some confusion and a resetting of the clock, Paloma Valley got off one offensive play before the game went to overtime.

Under high school football overtime rules, each team is given the ball at the opposition's 25-yard line. Teams must continue to pick up first downs or score, or the ball is given to the other team for the same opportunity. Moreno Valley won the coin toss and elected to give Paloma the ball first, so the Vikings would have the last shot.

On the Wildcats' fourth play of overtime, Boehm dropped back from the 7-yard line, found Benz (right) with a pass at the 2, and the wide receiver fought his way into the end zone for a 41-35 lead. Davis' PAT kick was blocked, however, meaning the Vikings could win the game with a touchdown and PAT.

They never came close. Anthony Bereal was dropped for a two-yard loss by Webb on first down, Ruben Colon tackled Joseph Kinny at the 20 after a short third-down pass, and Colon broke up a potential game-tying pass near the goal line on the final play.

"We knew what we had to do on offense," said Boehm, who passed for 227 yards and 4 touchdowns. "But the defense really stepped it up at the end of the game. I'd give them the game ball."

Ruben Colon (32) and Michael Valencia (12) break up a potential tying touchdown pass to Ronald Gaither in OT.

Ruben Colon trips up Moreno Valley's Anthony Bereal in the second half Friday night.