[For the full photo galleries, click here]
By KYLE ITO
Staff Writer
The University High School (UHS) Varsity football team played the Northwood High School (NHS) Timberwolves on October 31. The team fell short to NHS, ending 28-42. Several starters who suffered injuries prior to the October 24 game against Corona del Mar were still unable to play.
In the first quarter, NHS scored twice, quickly gaining a 0-14 lead against the Trojans. In the second quarter, UHS made a comeback. The team scored three touchdowns to NHS’s one touchdown in the second quarter. Matt Abellaneda (Jr.) gave the Trojans a 68-yard kickoff return and then capped the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run. UHS further closed the gap with a 52-yard passing touchdown to Michael Jung (Jr.) from quarterback Andre Campbell (Jr.), making it a one point game. Dakota Brooks (Sr.) recovered a fumble to set up an eventual 19-yard passing touchdown to Abellaneda. Going into halftime, the Trojans were leading 21-20.
During the second half, UHS scored its last points of the game with a 30-yard passing touchdown to Jung. NHS closed the game with three touchdowns and won with a 14-point lead.
After the game, Jung said, “Starting the game I really wanted to beat Northwood, and do everything I could to benefit the team, and ultimately win the game. During the game I made sure to focus, give 100%, and do my job blocking and route running and I was lucky enough to have opportunities to score twice. Although we ended with a loss, we played hard as a team and I hope to bounce back and win against Irvine.”
The Trojans played well and made a good effort against NHS despite having players with injuries, including starting quarterback Wes Jordan (Sr.), wide receiver Neil Boudreau (Jr.), center Weitai Sun (Sr.), cornerback/running back Tristan Lee-Jones (Sr.), lineman Kiyan Sorat (Sr.) and cornerback  Maverick Freedlander (Jr.). Key players Jordan and Boudreau are out for the season, and Sorat may return for the final game of the season.
UHS is now 3-6 overall in season and 0-4 in league play.
UHS finishes the season with a game against Irvine on Friday, November 7th at the UHS Stadium.