SV football team looks to bounce back

The Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League gridiron clash that many preseason observers marked as one of the top contests of the year features two teams coming off disappointing weekends.
Last season’s league champion Scotts Valley Falcons (4-2-1 overall, 2-0-1 SCCAL), fresh off a 17-17 tie with San Lorenzo Valley last week, will square off at Cabrillo College at 7:30 Friday, Oct. 30, against the 2008 runner-up St. Francis Sharks (5-2, 2-1), who were upended 21-7 by Soquel.
“Ties are like kissing your sister, but it is what it is,” coach Louie Walters said after his team’s 17-17 tie with SLV. “We’re focused on the tough team in front of us.”
The Sharks are led by their defense. The team returned virtually all of its defensive starters from last year and has given up the fewest points of any team in the SCCAL this season — just 99 through seven games. Their squad is led by two seniors, linebacker Zach Scurich and defensive tackle Tyler Sambrailo, a 6-foot-6, 270-pound standout. Both are considered NCAA Division I-quality players who are expected to draw the eye of college recruiters.
The Sharks stellar defense will face the league’s highest scoring offense in Scotts Valley. Walters says a top goal of his squad this week will be to convert its red zone opportunities into points, something he says the Falcons failed at too often against SLV.
“The mark of a good team is how well they rebound after a close encounter,” he said. “(St. Francis is) a tough opponent, and it should be a great game.”
SLV’s upcomgng game
Meanwhile, the San Lorenzo Valley High School Cougars will host Santa Cruz High at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31. The Cardinals are 1-2 in league after defeating a depleted Harbor team, 20-0, a week ago.
Santa Cruz has five running backs with more than 20 carries and is led by receiver Anthony Daoud, who has six touchdowns.