NORTH HILLS — With Hart’s star wide receiver Madix Frithsmith out, third-year coach Jake Goosen-Brown said he had a plan to beat Heritage Christian on Friday: Show every way his quarterback Camren Ketner can impact a game.
Ketner, a junior, started as part of the Hawks’ dominant ground game by scoring the team’s first touchdown of the game on a 38-yard run, later adding a 60-yard rushing touchdown as well. Then, he tossed in the passing game, throwing another two touchdowns, including a 77-yard completion to wide receiver Silas Tucker.
Safe to say that strategy worked as Ketner amassed 203 yards passing and 121 yards rushing to lead Hart (3-1) to a 49-14 victory over the hosting Heritage Christian Warriors (3-1), which was playing up multiple divisions. The Hawks’ second unit took over, and the clock continuously ran in the second half after Hart led 49-7 at halftime.
“It was a good game,” Ketner said.
Hart’s dominant win followed a hard-fought 39-20 loss to Pacifica last Friday and came without Frithsmith, who was the team’s leading rusher and receiver heading into the game.
Though Frithsmith didn’t play a snap, Goosen-Brown said he was available if the situation called for it and said he wasn’t recovering from a specific injury.
“We wanted to rest him,” Goosen-Brown said. “Last week was a tough game.”
Despite throwing for over 200 yards, Ketner only threw 10 passes, completing six. He didn’t throw his first pass until the second quarter, and didn’t complete his first one until a 19-yard touchdown to wide receiver Michael Toner.
But that pass was a big one.
Leading 14-7 and facing fourth-and-long, Ketner scrambled out of the pocket and launched a ball to the end zone that Toner nabbed in between two Warrior defenders.
“It really shifted our momentum,” Ketner said of the play.
The Hart defense had just made a big fourth-down stop on Heritage Christian’s previous drive, and made another on the following drive to set the Hawks up with a big lead that they would continue to build on.
Hart cornerback Bailey Hill was key to keeping the opposition at bay, intercepting Heritage Christian quarterback James Thompson twice, while linebacker Gavin Ray caused problems inside, recording multiple tackles for loss and making his impact known in the backfield.
“I was really happy to see Gavin flying downhill. It’s something we’ve been emphasizing and working on,” Goosen-Brown said. “(Hill) was mad he didn’t get a pick last week — he got one on the PAT, so it didn’t really count. So, he was happy. He had a purpose tonight to come out and get some picks.”
Besides Ketner, three other Hawks scored rushing touchdowns: running back Josh Rogozik and receivers Silas Tucker and Toner. Tucker also grabbed the other receiving touchdown.
Rogozik rushed for more than 120 of his 135 yards in the first quarter alone. He took four straight carries for a total of 52 yards on a four-play Hart touchdown drive early on, then broke for a massive 66-yard gain just as the quarter was about to end.
“He’s a good kid. He works hard. He normally does the unselfish thing,” Goosen-Brown said of Rogozik. “Last week, he did a lot of blocking. This week, he got to come out and carry the football, and he showed out and showed what he’s capable of.”
For Heritage Christian, Thompson struggled to get much going in the air, but was key to the Warriors’ lone score of the game on their first drive.
Thompson completed two passes, then ran three times for a total of more than 30 yards, including a gritty touchdown that gave his team a 7-0 lead at one point.
Hart’s defense had to make adjustments after the first drive to keep Thompson at bay, Goosen-Brown said, but Thompson continued to maneuver in the pocket to try to make big plays happen.
“He has a great ability to extend plays,” second-year Heritage Christian Head Coach Ben McEnroe said of Thompson. “We do some things in the pass game where we want to get him outside the pocket to give him that opportunity to pull the ball down and run if it’s there. … He did a good job.”
The Warriors showed some life against Hart’s second unit in the abbreviated second half, blocking a punt and a field goal to go along with a 65-yard touchdown run for Nate Brown that brought the score to 49-14.
Though Heritage Christian had dominated its first three games, surrendering only 16 points total in a series of blowouts, McEnroe said there is a lot the team can learn from the loss, especially against what he called an “outstanding” team.
“We wanted to play up,” McEnroe said. “When you’re playing against better teams, the mistakes are magnified. Sometimes you learn lessons like this.”
Hart has a bye next week before heading to Saugus for its first league game on Sept. 25, while Heritage Christian will look to bounce back in a home nonleague matchup with Agoura next Friday.