Kennedy scores late touchdown for non-league home victory over Woodbridge

Kennedy was led by (from left) Brody McCollum, Kamryn Wilson and Tarren Tran in a victory over Woodbridge Thursday night. (PHOTO: Jake Rhodes, For OC Sports Zone)

By JAKE RHODES

For OC Sports Zone

On a hot and sticky Thursday night at Handel Stadium, Kennedy’s football team scored a late touchdown to defeat Woodbridge 14-10 in a non-league game.

Late in the fourth quarter, the Warriors, leading 10-7, set up to punt at their 14-yard line. Then, a high snap instantly put the Fighting Irish in the red zone with a chance to take the lead.

On second down, Kennedy’s senior running back Angel Reyes ran it straight up the gut, powering his way into the end zone on a 7-yard TD run to give Kennedy (1-1) a 14-10 lead with 2:57 to go in the game.

Kennedy Coach Toa Siatunu’u said the short week forced his young players to focus on the details, and they delivered.

“With a short week, there was a lot of emphasis on making sure we stayed on our blocks and were physical up front,” said Siatunu’u. “Then our quarterback went down and we had a young quarterback Tarren (Tran) step up here, who did a phenomenal job in leading this offense and this team.”

After falling behind late, Woodbridge (0-2) got the ball back on its own 36-yard line with 1:15 to play and one time out.

The final drive started out promising, with three consecutive positive plays to set up second down and short on Kennedy’s 35-yard line with 40 seconds left on the clock. 

However, the Fighting Irish defensive backs stood tall, playing tight coverage to force three straight incompletions to secure the victory.

Senior defensive lineman Brody McCollum, who had an impressive sack on third down in the second quarter, praised the efforts of the Fighting Irish defense.

“I want to thank my linebacker AR (Angel Reyes), he leads us and helps us get everything right,” said McCollum. “We’re a strong unit, we’re the best defense in the league.”

Kennedy’s junior running back Kamryn Wilson had the most dynamic play of the evening. He carried the ball five times for 51 yards and a touchdown.

Thirty-seven of those yards came on his electric touchdown run in the second quarter which put Kennedy ahead 7-3. Wilson cut back across the line of scrimmage and won the race to the end zone.

Kennedy’s sophomore quarterback Tarren Tran was asked to fill in for starting quarterback junior Paxton Greenwood, who missed the game due to an injury. Tran took some big hits, and used his scrambling to turn near sacks into positive plays.

Tran led all rushers carrying the ball 11 times for 79 yards.

Sophomore quarterback Waylon Stone completed 19 of 30 passes for 217 yards for the Warriors. His top target, junior wide receiver Ryan Dumont, led all pass catchers with six receptions for 84 yards.

Woodbridge took a 3-0 lead when senior Ryan Colley made a 23-yard field goal after a 10 minute opening drive. 

After falling behind, Woodbridge responded with under three minutes left in the first half to take the lead. Senior running back Lavel Atkins scored on a 4-yard TD run to put the Warriors ahead 10-7.

Despite falling short, Woodbridge controlled the time of possession. Despite the loss, Warrior Coach Connor McBride was pleased with how his defense played.

“Obviously not happy with the final score. It was definitely our game to lose and we let it happen … proud of my defensive unit tonight. [They] held them to 14 and one touchdown was with a very short field,” McBride said. “No dwelling over here. We will get back to work tomorrow and be ready for our rivalry week against Irvine next Friday.”