Bishop Gorman can’t score in the second half, drops close game to De La Salle

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Saturday, Sept. 25, 2010 | 11 p.m.

The Bishop Gorman High football team gave another nationally respected opponent a tough game.

The Nevada power led host De La Salle of Concord, Calif., at halftime Saturday night but failed to score in the second half of a 28-14 defeat.

Just as in its season-opening loss to Hamilton High of Arizona in August, Gorman showed flashes of great play but couldn’t sustain the effort the entire game.

Shaquille Powell led the Gaels with 117 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. A would-be third touchdown in the fourth quarter, when the game was tied at 14, was called back because of a penalty. Two plays later, Colin Ditsworth misfired on a field goal that would have given the Gaels the lead.

Instead, ninth-ranked De La Salle showed why it is one of the nation’s elite teams in closing with a pair of touchdowns in the final six minutes.

“The bottom line is that our kids competed their tails off and did a fantastic job,” Gorman coach Tony Sanchez said. “We were inches away. It was down to the wire, a game we could have easily won.”

Anthony Williams’ 4-yard touchdown reception from Bart Houston with 6:17 remaining was the winning touchdown. De La Salle scored on a short run in the final two minutes, and Gorman’s Evan Zeger fumbled the ensuing kickoff to turn the ball over and essentially end the game.

De La Salle returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, but Gorman responded by limiting the defending California state champions to 61 yards in the first half. Meanwhile, Gorman had 190 yards and Powell muscled his way to a pair of touchdowns for a 14-7 lead at the break.

"We were down 7-0 before you can blink an eye,” Sanchez said.

The second half, however, was a different story.

Powell fumbled midway through the third quarter and De La Salle’s Lucas Dunne rushed in from 19 yards out on the next play to even the game at 14.

Gorman's record fell to 3-2 overall, with both defeats coming to teams ranked in the top 25 by USA Today. Hamilton was ranked No. 16.

Gorman entered the De La Salle game ranked No. 18, but will likely not be included in the next rankings. The Gaels went 15-0 last year in Sanchez's first year. They have outscored local opponents 111-0 in two games this fall.