San Dimas: 23 – Bonita: 0
Friday, September 27, 1985
The 1985 Bearcats vs Saints smudge pot game started off with a kick-off like any other game. It remained scoreless until midway through the first quarter when Brent Nicolas the Saint’s placekicker, put a 23 yard field goal through field post. After that, till the fourth quarter, the Bearcats and Saints went back and forth without scoring on each other. In the last seven minutes the Saint’s Shawn Clark scored a 5-yard run with 6:26 left and later a 22- yard run with 1:29 left on the clock. He rushed for 163 yards on 23 carries leading all rushers. Teammate Ash carried the ball seven times for 92 yards.
With 10 seconds left in the third quarter and the Saints preparing to score again, Bonita linebacker Charlie Picha put a hard hit on the Saint’s Tony Ash causing the the ball to pop in the hands of Bonita’s nose guard Steve Giano who lumbered to the Saint’s 28 yard line. San Dimas was able to stop the drive before Bonita could score, and Bonita missed their chance to put points on the board with a missed field goal in the fourth quarter. Bonita’s top rusher was junior Bobby Vause, who went 32 yards on 10 carries. Lanky Bearcat quarterback, Rick Fluckey, completed seven of his 16 attempts for 79 yards.
San Dimas coach Dick Shelbourne made a comment after the game about his team’s performance, claiming that they “could not have played a worse ball game.” This comment came from many of the mistakes the Saints made throughout the game. “. . . the key of the whole game was all the penalties and mistakes we made. I don’t want to take anything from Bonita, they played a hard ballgame, but I do not think that we could have played a worse game. I think we were over confident.” The San Dimas receivers dropped multiple passes made by QB Tim James, making the completion rate 6 in 13 passes.
But by the end of the game, San Dimas dominated the offense with 280 total yards compared to only 111 yards by the Bearcats.
Leaving the final score of the Smudge Pot Bowl 23-0 with the Saints taking home the big prize. To date the Saints have dominated the big rivalry game winning 10 of the last 14 games.
-Emilie Stubbs ’23
Varsity Bearcats
Front row – Kevin Degraff, Dominic Mistone, Tony Pipo, Tim Gutierrez, Steve Lopez,John Tarbox, Art Ho, Ric Slagle, Jim Nagengast.
Second row – Rick Kelley, Charlie Piehr, Jim Stanfill, Brian Weaver, Rodney Aragon, Chris Enriquez, Shawn Prince, Clark Moses, Mike Anderson, Bobby Gonzales, Coach Davis.
Third row – Coach Martinez, Joe Harchut, Sam Bonanno, Tony Leal, Shawn Erwin, Kevin Flora, Wayne Keller, Steve Giano, Paul Wentzel, Kevin Hershberger, Jeff Bernacchi, Coach Riggs.
Fourth row – Coach Young, Bob Vause, Jim Guertin, Gary Circello, Elijah Smith, Eric Smith, Jeff Nickens, Pat Caro, Darin Riggs, Rick Fluckey.
Giving It 110%
The Bearcat defensive lineman rose victoriously over the fallen San Dimas quarterback and raised a clenched fist as a triumphant symbol of conquest. For a moment it seemed as though one could actually feel the momentum swing to the Bonita side and it seemed that this was to be the year the Bearcat football team would recover the smudge pot after being held by the Saints for two consecutive years. This, unfortunately, was not to be the case and, as the shot sounded ending another bitterly hard fought game, the smudge pot be- longed once again to San Dimas. Head coach George King said later on he is sure the team will recover the trophy next year. This, however, is not what mattered. What mattered is the fact that the team was trying hard and giving it 110%. The varsity defense again proved to be a vital asset to the team. The defense, along with the rest of the team, labored long and hard in preparation for the season. They began lifting weights early last spring and started formal training in the blazing heat of sum- mer. Coach King, in only his second year as head coach, proved to be a great leader and was well-respected by the players. The team scored some impressive wins and managed to keep spirits high throughout the season. Top players for the offense included Clark Moses, Chris Enriquez, Rodney Aragon, and Joe Harchur. Outstanding defensive players were Jim Stanfill, Jeff Nickens, and Dominic Mistone.
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Varsity Saints
Front: John Hall, Sean Killian, Tony Carranza, Scott Bowman, Manfred Pereda, Felix Badibanga, Tony Ash.
Row 2: Ron Paoletto, Albert Hernandez, George Perez, Noel Zemla, Jeff McDonald, Neil Reclusado, Robert Landreth.
Row 3: Mike Morgan, Steven Robinson, Ellis Gordon, Jeff Butler, Carl Stock, Shawn Clark, DuShaun Franklin.
Row 4: Robert Alo, Robert Boyde, John Gabor, David Lehr, Sean Spadero, Roger Pattico, Jon Troyano.
Back: Todd James, David Misch, Brent Nicolas, Keith Gissel, Tim Metcalfe, Tim James, Jim Spears.
Football Follows a New Face
The football squad boomed with pride from beginning to end. New head Coach Shelbourne and his staff – coaches Beck, Gorsky, Bennett and Biggers, and trainer Kelly Stangenberg – began a new program with hard work, understanding, and a commitment to getting things done.
Shelbourne said, “Success is the end result of hard work. I don’t know any other way.” The determination of the offense as well as the defense was proved with a 7-1 league record.
The offense, led by returning players Tim James as quarterback; Tim Metcalfe, wide receiver; and Shawn Clark, fullback, aver. aged 28 points a game. A powerful defense with Jim Spears and Keith Gissel as defensive tackles; sophomore George Perez, nose guard; sophomore Ron Paoletto, at corner; and Jon Troyano as strong safety only allowed an average of 5 points a game.
“We had to be a team with heart, being the smallest in size and number in the league; we made every team work hard,” said senior Keith Gissel. At the league game of the year against Charter Oak, a record breaking crowd overflowed the stadium for the first time in history. The Saints held the Chargers back until the third quarter, which no other team had done.
Continuing their success, the team beat Mark Keppel, and made a 6½ hour drive to El Centro to beat Central and move to the Southeastern Conference C..F. semi-finals. The loss to Diamond Bar was nothing to be ashamed of.
As a whole it proved to be a hardwork- ing, devoted, and determined team who ended another successful year. “We were intense and more determined to win,’ ” said Noel Zemla, and they proved it!
