By: Viswa Douglass ’21
It was a tale of two halves on Friday night as the Harvard-Westlake varsity football team suffered a 38-31 loss against the Garfield Bulldogs at Ted Slavin Field.
Led by Freshman Quarterback Jameson Wang, the wolverines first half was punctuated by many trick plays and amazing receptions. The first snap resulted in a touchdown for the Wolverines. Wang completed a seven yard pass to Senior Wide Receiver Zack Harleston who converted it into a touchdown by pitching the ball to Junior Running Back Thomas Glover. Glover then ran for a 73-yard touchdown. It was the “Hook-and-Ladder” performed to perfection. On the very next Wolverine drive, Wang connected with Harleston again, this time for a 30-yard touchdown. Only a few drives later the Wolverines connected on another Hook-and-Ladder play. Senior Wide Receiver Max Robertson pitched the ball to junior Wide Receiver Cam Jones who then ran for a sixty eight yard Wolverine touchdown. The score at the end of the half was Harvard-Westlake 28, Garfield 10.
The Wolverines were controlling the game in the first half but, the second half was a different story.
“The guys [Bulldogs Offensive Lineman] were just so much heavier than us and they were using the QB sneak a lot” Said Senior Defensive Lineman Gavin Keipp-Stroud.
Both the offensive and defensive lines of the Bulldogs exerted their will on the Wolverines. The defense was led by Senior End Carlos Nuñez who disrupted the timing pass patterns of the Wolverines with his relentless “Bull-Rush”. The offensive line led by Senior Center David Robles consistently “stood up” the Wolverines defense allowing Bulldog Quarterback Adambomb Polanco to rush for huge gains. Polanco rushed for three of the four second half bulldog touchdowns.
“The biggest thing was that they [the Bulldogs] wanted it more the second half which led the loss” Said Freshman Quarterback Jameson Wang.
The final score of the game was Garfield Bulldogs: 38, Harvard-Westlake Wolverines: 31 bringing the Wolverines to a 2 and 1 Record. Harvard-Westlake will be on the road facing the El Camino Real Conquistadors on Friday, game time is 7:00 pm.
