Bye Week? Not for These Vista Football Standouts |
With the varsity scoreboards quiet, some of the area’s top performers get their turn in the spotlight — and RBV’s freshmen make plenty of noise with a 54-0 win. |
For once, the Friday night scoreboard didn't dictate the story. Rancho Buena Vista, Vista High and Tri-City Christian varsity football all had the week off. That gives us a chance to look at something that can get lost once the scores start rolling in: the individual players quietly putting together impressive seasons. |
 RBV quarterback Van Piercy — Photo courtesy of Kristina Jimenez Photography, used with permission. |
Van Piercy Has Been Taking Care of Business Rancho Buena Vista quarterback Van Piercy entered the week ranked No. 16 among San Diego passing leaders on the Oct. 6 SD Prep Insider leaderboard. Through seven games, Piercy had thrown for 1,238 yards and 13 touchdowns while averaging 176.9 passing yards per game. But here's the number that really catches our attention: one interception. Piercy had attempted 152 passes through the reporting period, completing 83 of them. That's a lot of opportunities to put the football in harm's way, yet the RBV quarterback had been intercepted just once. |
 Tri-City Christian’s Donovan Cronkhite carries the ball for the Eagles — Photo courtesy of Katherine Elaine Photography, used with permission. |
Donovan Cronkhite Isn't Your Typical Quarterback Tri-City Christian junior Donovan Cronkhite ranked No. 17 among San Diego rushing leaders through the Oct. 6 reporting period with 606 yards and six touchdowns on 91 carries. That's an average of 101 rushing yards per game and 6.66 yards every time he carries the football. And yes, we're still talking about the quarterback. His rushing production has put him among some of the area's top ball carriers regardless of position. The Eagles Have Ball Hawks, Too Junior Noah Haber ranked No. 7 among San Diego interception leaders on the Oct. 6 list with three interceptions through six games. Senior Caleb Williams also appeared among the area's interception leaders with two picks through three games in the leaderboard reporting period. Combined with Cronkhite's rushing recognition, Tri-City Christian landed three players on the regional lists we're tracking. While Varsity Rested, RBV Freshmen Went to Work Apparently nobody told Rancho Buena Vista's freshman team this was supposed to be a quiet week. The young Longhorns faced La Costa Canyon Thursday and walked away with a 54-0 victory. |
 Rancho Buena Vista’s freshman Longhorns gather on the sideline during their 54–0 win over La Costa Canyon — Photo by @photosby.g10, used with permission. |
Yes, 54-0.
The final was confirmed directly to North Valley Flare by a photographer covering the program.
Freshman and JV players are building the programs we'll be covering on Friday nights in the years ahead. When one of those teams puts together a performance like this, it deserves more than a tiny score at the bottom of an article.
Vista High Gets a Chance to Regroup
Vista High varsity also had the week away from competition.
It's been a challenging season for the Panthers, so a week without a Friday-night opponent offers something valuable: time to practice, adjust and prepare for the remaining games.
We aren't going to manufacture individual accolades simply because other programs have players on this week's leaderboards. When we can verify a Vista player's accomplishment, we'll recognize it.
Sometimes the Scoreboard Can Wait
Most Saturdays, we start with the final scores. This week reminded us that there's another layer to local high school football.
Piercy has thrown 13 touchdown passes while being intercepted just once. Cronkhite has rushed his way onto a leaderboard filled with the area's top ball carriers. Haber and Williams are taking footballs away from opposing offenses.
And while their varsity teammates enjoyed a week off, RBV's freshmen went out and put 54 unanswered points on the board.
That's plenty of football for one supposedly quiet week.
Questions You May Have About Vista Football
Did the Vista-area varsity teams play this week? Rancho Buena Vista, Vista High and Tri-City Christian varsity football were all off this week.
Where does Van Piercy rank among San Diego passers? Piercy ranked No. 16 on the Oct. 6 SD Prep Insider passing leaderboard with 1,238 passing yards, 13 touchdowns and just one interception through seven games.
What has Donovan Cronkhite done this season? Cronkhite ranked No. 17 among San Diego rushing leaders with 606 yards and six touchdowns on 91 carries through six games.
What was the RBV freshman score? Rancho Buena Vista defeated La Costa Canyon 54-0 Thursday.
Leaderboard statistics reflect the SD Prep Insider rankings dated Oct. 6 and therefore do not include games played after that reporting period. North Valley Flare verifies available scores and player information before publication. |
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5 Comments
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Scores still matter, but I get the point. Some kids do good work every Friday and never get their names mentioned.
Tri-City Christian deserves a look too. Glad all three schools are in the conversation for once.
My son played at Vista High, and the bye week was always a welcome break. Hope the team gets some rest before the next game.
I would like to hear which Rancho Buena Vista players are having those quiet seasons. Hard to follow everyone when the games get going.
Good to see the players getting some attention during the week off. The scoreboard does not tell the whole story.