Final score: 37-0.

The win improves Rancho’s record to 2-0 on the season.

In the photo, Rancho’s Stephan Monge runs for a TD.

The Matadors took the match at Garden Grove High by scores of 25-18, 25-17, 27-25.

After closing out the first two sets with strong finishes, it appeared the Matadors might put away the Argonauts handily in the third set.

Bolsa Grande jumped out to a lead of 12-6 before the Argonauts regained some momentum.

Long Tran got the Argonauts back on track with a tap over blockers for a point to cut the lead to 12-7. A couple of points later, Janson Nguyen put a kill through two blockers to pull the Argonauts to within two, at 12-10.

The two teams then exchanged three-point runs. Khoa Pham put down a first-hit kill on an overpass by Garden Grove defenders that put the Matadors up 14-10. A Garden Grove misplay put the Matadors up 15-10 before the Argonauts answered with three straight points to close the gap to 15-13.

Late in the set, the two teams exchanged several clutch plays in a long rally that ended with Garden Grove’s Andrew Nguyen getting the point with a kill off a tip. That point made the score 21-19 for Bolsa Grande.

Bolsa Grande then scored two points. An Le and Michael Luong each had a kill to extend the Matador lead to 23-19, as Bolsa Grande looked to close out the match.

But the Argonauts rallied one more time. Long Tran had a kill to cut the lead to 23-20. A net violation and ace serve cut the lead to 23-22 and Janson Nguyen tied the set at 23-23 with a kill off a block.

With the set tied 24-24, Jimmy Nguyen had a kill for Bolsa Grande to put them up 25-24. But Fitu Lupematasila answered with a kill to again tied the set at 25-25.

However, Jimmy Nguyen and Max Wilcox would each get kills to close out the match with a 27-25 win.

The Matadors improved to 7-2, while Garden Grove dropped to third place in league with a 6-3 record.

La Quinta came into this week in first place at 8-1. La Quinta was scheduled to play at Garden Grove on Tuesday (May 2) while the Matadors closed out the regular season at Santiago on Tuesday (both games were after press time).

Although the standings are still in flux, all three will be entering the CIF-SS Division 4 playoffs. In last week’s CIF-SS poll, the Matadors were ranked No. 5, while La Quinta was in the No. 8 spot. Garden Grove received votes, but was just outside the top 10.

The Matadors took the match at Garden Grove High by scores of 25-18, 25-17, 27-25.

After closing out the first two sets with strong finishes, it appeared the Matadors might put away the Argonauts handily in the third set.

Bolsa Grande jumped out to a lead of 12-6 before the Argonauts regained some momentum.

Long Tran got the Argonauts back on track with a tap over blockers for a point to cut the lead to 12-7. A couple of points later, Janson Nguyen put a kill through two blockers to pull the Argonauts to within two, at 12-10.

The two teams then exchanged three-point runs. Khoa Pham put down a first-hit kill on an overpass by Garden Grove defenders that put the Matadors up 14-10. A Garden Grove misplay put the Matadors up 15-10 before the Argonauts answered with three straight points to close the gap to 15-13.

Late in the set, the two teams exchanged several clutch plays in a long rally that ended with Garden Grove’s Andrew Nguyen getting the point with a kill off a tip. That point made the score 21-19 for Bolsa Grande.

Bolsa Grande then scored two points. An Le and Michael Luong each had a kill to extend the Matador lead to 23-19, as Bolsa Grande looked to close out the match.

But the Argonauts rallied one more time. Long Tran had a kill to cut the lead to 23-20. A net violation and ace serve cut the lead to 23-22 and Janson Nguyen tied the set at 23-23 with a kill off a block.

With the set tied 24-24, Jimmy Nguyen had a kill for Bolsa Grande to put them up 25-24. But Fitu Lupematasila answered with a kill to again tied the set at 25-25.

However, Jimmy Nguyen and Max Wilcox would each get kills to close out the match with a 27-25 win.

The Matadors improved to 7-2, while Garden Grove dropped to third place in league with a 6-3 record.

La Quinta came into this week in first place at 8-1. La Quinta was scheduled to play at Garden Grove on Tuesday (May 2) while the Matadors closed out the regular season at Santiago on Tuesday (both games were after press time).

Although the standings are still in flux, all three will be entering the CIF-SS Division 4 playoffs. In last week’s CIF-SS poll, the Matadors were ranked No. 5, while La Quinta was in the No. 8 spot. Garden Grove received votes, but was just outside the top 10.

Three of the Vaquero runners finished in the top four, led by Andrew Hernandez, who took second with a time of 15:57.1 He was just three seconds behind Drake Prince of High Tech High in Chula Vista.

Hernandez was followed by Daniel Rioquinto with a time of 16:24.0 and Raymond Ruvalcaba in 16:28.9.

BY TED APODACA: The Rancho Alamitos High boys cross country team won the title in the Division 3 juniors division at the Dana Hills Invitational on Saturday at Dana Hills High.

Three of the Vaquero runners finished in the top four, led by Andrew Hernandez, who took second with a time of 15:57.1 He was just three seconds behind Drake Prince of High Tech High in Chula Vista.

Hernandez was followed by Daniel Rioquinto with a time of 16:24.0 and Raymond Ruvalcaba in 16:28.9.

In the boys senior race, Andrew Lopez led the Vaqueros with a 3rd place overall finish. Lopez finished the race in 16:25.2. Rancho’s Richard Le also ran the senior event, finishing 44th overall in 18:40.9.

Rancho was led by Don Molina in the Division 3 sophomore boys race with a 15th place overall finish. Molina finished the three-mile course in 17:35.5. Kevin Pinzon had a strong showing in 58th overall at 18:45.7.

In other prep action, Westminster High lost to Kaiser High, 49-0. Westminster faces Artesia at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7.

Pictured, Rancho Alamitos High School’s Nathan Kanyavong scores a first quarter touchdown during a 20-15 win last Thursday at Garden Grove Stadium.

In other prep action, Westminster High lost to Kaiser High, 49-0. Westminster faces Artesia at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7.

In the photo, Rancho's cheerleaders get ready to rally fans before the big game.

Rancho Alamitos High improved to 2-0 in the Garden Grove League with a 42-26 win over Bolsa Grande High on Thursday night at Bolsa Grande Stadium.

In the photo, Rancho's cheerleaders get ready to rally fans before the big game.

Garden Grove led ,30-14, at halftime, with the Aztecs receiving the second half kickoff. But on the Aztec drive, a pass went off the hands of the receiver and was picked off by Jacob Zazueta, who returned it into Aztec territory.

BY TED APODACA: Garden Grove High took a solid lead over La Quinta into halftime. But it was a defensive play in the start of the third quarter that spurred the Argonauts to run away with the game, 47-26, in the Garden Grove League opener for both teams last week at Bolsa Grande High.

Garden Grove led ,30-14, at halftime, with the Aztecs receiving the second half kickoff. But on the Aztec drive, a pass went off the hands of the receiver and was picked off by Jacob Zazueta, who returned it into Aztec territory.

Senior Dominik Sanchez completed the swing with a 27-yard touchdown run that pushed the Argonaut lead to 37-14. Sanchez finished the night with 216 yards rushing with three touchdowns.

“The line did really good with the blocking, they kept us going, I told them you keep hitting, we’ll keep grinding,” Sanchez said.

On La Quinta’s ensuing possession, the Argonaut defense forced a punt that set the team up at their own 40 yard line. Four plays later, quarterback Cristian Marquez ran 10 yards for a touchdown to extend the Argonauts’ lead to 44-14.

Sanchez had a 20 yard run on the drive and Zazueta had a 24-yard run to the 10 yard line that set up Marquez’s TD run. Garden Grove’s Jonathan Gallegos added 100 yards rushing for the Argonauts.

Garden Grove had an extra week off after its final non-league game against Laguna Hills was cancelled due to illness among Laguna Hills’ team. Garden Grove coach Ricardo Cepeda said that while the extra bye helped a few players get past injuries, they also had to shake off some rust.

Garden Grove played some strong teams in non-league play, including a top-ranked Pacifica squad three weeks prior. While the schedule had left the Argonauts at 1-3 going into league play, Cepeda said it helped them be tested as they look to retain the league championship. La Quinta looked like one of the toughest foes in their way.

“We came ready to play, we knew they [La Quinta] were good … we played a tough schedule for a reason,” Cepeda said.

Garden Grove returns to Garden Grove League play at home on Thursday, at 7 p.m. against Los Amigos.

The Mariners again showed that they will be a force to be reckoned with as league play nears.  

The Mariners jumped out to an early lead en route to a 48-14 win over Garden Grove High last week at Garden Grove High. The Mariner offense compiled more than 450 yards of total offense, while the defense held Garden Grove scoreless in the first half.

BY TED APODACA: Pacifica High’s football team has looked unstoppable on offense and punishing on defense so far this year.

The Mariners again showed that they will be a force to be reckoned with as league play nears.  

The Mariners jumped out to an early lead en route to a 48-14 win over Garden Grove High last week at Garden Grove High. The Mariner offense compiled more than 450 yards of total offense, while the defense held Garden Grove scoreless in the first half.

The Mariners led 29-0 at halftime and after a quick rally attempt by the Argonauts to open the second half, the Mariners closed strong with a 19-0 run in the fourth quarter.

Pacifica's quarterback, Ben Jefferson, again sparked the Mariners, with 209 passing yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 138 yards and two more touchdowns.

Senior running back Isaak Togia added 105 rushing yards and added three touchdowns.

Pacifica scored touchdowns on their first three possessions, including a 99-yard drive after the Argonauts pinned them at the one yard line on a punt. Jefferson completed three passes for 38 yards on the drive and Togia had a 22 yard run that moved the ball out to the 38 yard line. Togia also capped the drive with a 20-yard touchdown run that put the Mariners up 14-0.

On Garden Grove’s ensuing possession, Pacifica junior Sean Blake intercepted a pass to set up another Mariner drive that was capped with a five-yard touchdown run by Togia.

Despite the victory, Mariner coach Vinnie Lopez felt the team played sloppy in too many aspects. Notably, he was concerned with too many penalties. Lopez said the focus will be to eliminate those penalties.

Garden Grove was able to put together a scoring drive to open the second half that cut the lead to 29-7. The Argonauts also recovered an onside kick and added a second touchdown that cut the lead to 29-14. However, the Mariners regained the momentum and closed out the game.

Garden Grove had touchdown receptions by Kevin Feliuaiand and Jose Carillo. Garden Grove will have a bye this week and will return to host Laguna Hills on Sept. 29. Pacifica hosts Aliso Niguel at 7 p.m. on Friday at Bolsa Grande High.

Rancho looked strong on both offense and defense, coasting to a 49-15 victory over its Anaheim opponent.

Rancho Alamitos High in Garden Grove opened its season with a big win against Savanna High on Friday night at Bolsa Grande Stadium.

Rancho looked strong on both offense and defense, coasting to a 49-15 victory over its Anaheim opponent.

In the photograph, Pacifica High’s Alani Nguyen drives a pitch through the infield for an RBI single.

Pacifica will play South Hills High in the second round at 3:15 p.m. Tuesday, May 23. The location will be neutral but has not been announced.

Pacifica High School beat Saugus High by a score of 8-4 at Pacifica High to advance to the second round of the playoffs.

In the photograph, Pacifica High’s Alani Nguyen drives a pitch through the infield for an RBI single.

Pacifica will play South Hills High in the second round at 3:15 p.m. Tuesday, May 23. The location will be neutral but has not been announced.