Centennial’s offense finally gets going, beats Shadow Ridge

By Paul Delos Santos

Friday, Sept. 20, 2013 | 11:50 p.m.

After only scoring seven points in two games, Centennial was looking for something to spark its young, but stagnant offense.

All-City selection Lantz Worthington provided it, scoring three touchdowns on 165 yards rushing, and receiver Jordan Kirchner did his part with a pair of long touchdown receptions to lead Centennial to a 40-7 victory over Shadow Ridge.

“Those kids needed confidence, and we got that tonight,” Centennial coach Leon Evans said. “A game like tonight puts belief back into the system.”

Things got off slowly, however, as Centennial (1-2) only put six points up in the first half.

Then in a flash, the Bulldogs got an offensive spark from Worthington, who ripped off a 57-yard touchdown run. Backup quarterback Coll Thompson followed suit, tossing a pair of long touchdown passes to Kirchner.

The Bulldogs finished the game scoring 34 points in the second half.

“We got into our groove,” Evans said. “We got Lantz going, and we had two really long strikes to Kirchner and it really sparked us.”

With the offense rolling at a high efficiency in the second half, it allowed the defense to play rested unlike previous weeks.

Kyle Carden, who started the game at quarterback, threw a touchdown pass in the first half to Jacob Gardner.

Josh Gray also had a solid day on the ground for Centennial, rushing for 63 yards.

Shadow Ridge fell to 1-2.

Paul Delos Santos can be reached at 990-2416 or mail to [email protected]. Follow Paul on Twitter at twitter.com/pauliedelos.