Villanueva: Five TDs, Monarchs gain final

By Nick Pellegrino
Updated: November 23, 2024

2024 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL

ECS staff report

Division V: Monte Vista 33. at Vista 13

VISTA – Regardless of how you list them, the Monte Vista Monarchs may have pulled off the greatest upsets in CIF San Diego Section history among the lower divisions.

Powered by five touchdown bursts by running back Alexander “The Great” Villanueva, the Monarchs (8-5 overall) raced to a quick 13-0 cushion on the way to wasting top-seeded Vista, 33-13, in Friday’s (Nov. 21) semifinals of the Division V championships.

Monte Vista was originally not even among the section Top 64 teams under a new postseason format. However, when Rancho Buena Vista — ironically, Vista’s in-district rival — vacated its playoff berth, Monte Vista not only was elevated into a CIF berth, the Monarchs also elevated their game.

Villanueva posted an exclamation point early and often.

On the contest’s opening series, the senior romped 64 yards just 67 seconds into the action for a 6-0 lead.

Minutes later, Villanueva added a second TD for a 13-0 lead.

And the athers never found anyway to stop him.

A brief Vista savoy to comeback saw Jacob Covarrubias score on a 15-yard run with under three minutes renaining in the half.

However, the span was too much for Villanueva, who capped a long drive with a 4-yard dive into the end zone for a 20-7 cushion at the intermission.

A pair of addition Villanueva scors on consecutbier Monte Vista marches in the fourth period cemented the triumph.

With 10:56 left, Villanueva went 20 yards to the end zone to make it 27-7, then a 27-yard burst with 6:22 to go pushed the lead to 33-7.

Final statistics were still being accumulated at press time, but on Villanueva’s five TD rushes alone, he posted 130 yards on the ground.

While the upper half of the Division V bracket has been wild with upsets, not so in the lower half, as second-seeded Bonita Vista fained a finals berth by stopping No. 3 Crawford, 27-12.

This will be the first title game appearance by Monte Visya (any division) since 2017.

Bonita Vista, which won the CIFSDS title and advcanced to the state playoffs in 2015, previously had the poorest postseason record in CFISDS history.

From 1980 until the Barons’ 2015 run to the state playoffs, the school posted a remarkably poor record of just 3-35 — winningless than 10 percent of the time.

Note: Villanueva’s performance is believed to be the best by a Monte Vista back since Darrell Mack captured consecutive East County rushing titles in 2003 and 2004, the season immediately following back-to-back rushing crowns by Reggie Bush of Helix in 2001 and 2002.

Jahmon McClendon had 2,638 Yards and 41 TDs in 2018, as well.