Prep football: Defense fuels Marin Catholic’s big win against Tam

Three interceptions during an outstanding defensive effort staked Marin Catholic to an early 21-point lead as the Wildcats shut down former league rival Tam High, 42-0, on a windy Saturday afternoon in Mill Valley.

“We just had an incredible comeback win (29-28) against Manteca last week and we’re trying to build on that,” Marin Catholic head coach Mazi Moayed said. “This team is still developing and we’re trying to get into a rhythm.”

MC and Tam are both looking for challenges as they prepare for life in the new four-division Redwood Empire League. Marin Catholic and San Marin are playing in the top-tier Adobe Division, with Redwood and Tam playing in the second-tier Valley Division.

Marin Catholic (2-2) travels to Stockton next week to play Edison, then has a bye week before opening league play with a road game against San Marin on Oct. 11. Tam (0-4) opens league play next week at home against Justin-Siena.

“We’re playing some tough competition, playing under pressure to get stronger,” Tam High football head coach Anthony Mejia said.

Jude Baker and the Wildcats frustrated Tam High quarterback Reed Edwards at almost every turn. His first two passes were intercepted, setting up a pair of Marin Catholic touchdowns early in the game. Baker slipped in front of the receiver to snare Edwards’ first pass of the game.

It took Marin Catholic junior quarterback Caedon Afsharipour and the Wildcats five plays to cover the 33 yards to the end zone. Afsharipour rolled out to his left to find Braiden Bachich-Dixon waiting in the back of the end zone on a 13-yard touchdown pass.

Edwards’ second pass attempt of the game was tipped and then intercepted by Wildcats senior Chase Merrick near midfield. Two minutes later, Marin Catholic senior receiver Kelly Storms plucked a deep pass from Afsharipour to give the Wildcats the ball at the Tam goal line. Kyle Conroy then pushed the ball across the line for a 14-0 advantage.

Bachich-Dixon stepped up for an interception, and then a 20-yard reception in double coverage that he turned into a 63-yard touchdown for a 21-0 Wildcats lead to start the second quarter.

Edwards had no time to wait in the pocket as he was sacked six times for a total loss of 27 yards, with juniors Vince Tarantino and Tucker Brock harassing him all day. Marin Catholic held the Red-tailed Hawks to just 89 yards on the ground and 209 yards of total offense. Edwards still managed to complete 10 of 18 passes for 120 yards and had nine carries for 55 yards.

“We didn’t see film of him, but we knew Edwards is a strong quarterback and a strong runner, so we had an idea of what to do,” Baker said. “Tam’s a great team and all respect to them and to Edwards. He’s a great quarterback. This was a chance for us to show we can be consistent on the field. We’ve had some challenges, but this was a chance tor us to play a good team and to build some momentum.”

Tam’s defense almost pulled off an impressive goal-line stand against a bigger Marin Catholic lineup, rejecting three assaults by the Wildcats before Conroy made a 2-yard dive into the end zone for a 28-0 edge with just under 6 minutes left in the first half.

Marin Catholic’s Jarred Geissberger started the second half with an 85-yard kickoff return as he went untouched into the end zone. Marin Catholic tacked on a 34-yard touchdown reception from Afsharipour to Reece Barrett midway through the third quarter to cap the scoring.

Afsharipour connected on 11 of 16 passes for 233 yards, with Bachich-Dixon catching three passes for 84 yards. Sophomore Jackson Ahern had two catches for a combined 52 yards.

Tam senior defensive end Josh Welborn did his best to make life rough for Afsharipour with a pair of sacks. Juniors Wyatt Leach and Cole Kramlich with senior David Hopkins also got in on the action, as Tam tallied four sacks.

“This was another one where things got away from us early,” Mejia said. “I wanted to get the run game going faster than we did. I know we got things moving more in the second half, but you just can’t let yourself fall into a hole like that.”

Marin Catholic 42, Tam 0

Non-league

Marin Catholic 14 14 14 0 — 42

Tam 0 0 0 0 — 0

SCORING SUMMARY

MC — Bachich-Dixon 13 pass from Afsharipour (Carroll kick)

MC — Conroy 1 run (Carroll kick)

MC — Bachich-Dixon 63 pass from Afsharipour (Carroll kick)

MC — Conroy 2 run (Carroll kick)

MC — Geissberger 85 kickoff return (Carroll kick)

MC — Barrett 34 pass from Afsharipour (Carroll kick)

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — MC, Reed 4-20, Afsharipour 5-11, Conroy, 5-10, Geissberger 5-6, Johnson 1-3, Etcheber 1-7, Kelley 1-(minus-1). Totals 22-59. Tam, Edwards 9-55, Koo 11-17, Green 2-11, Kramlich 1-6, Kelsey 2-0. Totals 25-89.

PASSING — MC, Afsharipour 11-16-1 233. Sacks 4-28. Totals 11-16-1 205. Tam, Edwards 10-18-3 120. Sacks 6-27. Totals 10-18-3 93.

RECEIVING — MC, Bachich-Dixon 3-84, Ahern 2-52, Barrett 2-40, Baker 1-9, Storms 1-47, Bullian 1-1, Lyon 1-0. Totals 11-233. Tam, Kramlich 2-50, Green 3-34, Christopher 3-21, Ural 2-15. Totals 10-120.

Records — Marin Catholic 2-2, Tam 0-4.