LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE — St. Francis, looking for its first win of the season, fell 22-21 at home to Muir on Friday after rallying in the final minute.
St. Francis running back Elijah Wilson scored his third touchdown in the final minute, but the Golden Knights missed the extra point to tie the score.
It still wasn’t over.
The Golden Knights managed to get the ball back after Muir botched a snap, turning the ball over.
Golden Knights quarterabck Luke Danni quickly moved them down to the 33-yard line with 19 seconds left. But Danni was picked off by Muir’s Andrew Arnold, allowing the Mustangs to escape with the victory.
Muir improved to 2-1 while the Golden Knights dropped to 0-4.
“I’m just glad we understand the situation,” said Muir head coach Lance Mitchell on the final play. “It makes me happy to see kids know their assignment and execute it.”
It was revenge for Muir, who was defeated by St. Francis in the quarterfinals of the CIF Soutern Section Division 6 playoffs last season, 28-27.
St. Francis, which lost starting quarterback Shawn Sanders to a collarbone injury in a scrimmage before the season, let their best chance to earn a win slip away.
“We had a shot and we had our chances but we didn’t do it,” said St. Francis coach Dean Herrington. “We’re gonna get Shawn back in a few weeks and be a totally different team.”
The Golden Knights deployed a run heavy offense against Muir, relying on Wilson who carried the ball 29 times for 102 yards and three touchdowns.
“I felt great tonight but we lost, just gotta keep working hard,” said Wilson. “I appreciate my offensive line because I couldn’t do it without them.”
Muir put together an 85-yard drive that drained 11 minutes off the clock, taking a 7-0 lead on Deveon Blaylock’s touchdown.
St. Francis replied by pounding the rock with Wilson, who scored on a one-yard touchdown run to take an 8-7 lead after the two-point conversion.
Wilson extended the Golden Knights’ lead to 15-7 with a nine-yard touchdown run.
Muir tied the score when quarterback Trey Gamble connected on a 24-yard touchdown pass to Blaylock, and they made the two-point conversion to tie the score, 15-15.
Not done yet, Muir got the ball back for one more possession in the first half, and Gamble made good use of it with a 50-yard touchdown pass to Ethan Leyland. But Muir missed a go-ahead 22-yard field goal, leaving the score tied at half.
Muir took the lead for good on Gamble’s 24-yard touchdown pass to Blaylock to go up 22-15 with a minute left in the third quarter.
Blaylock finished with two touchdowns.
“I was anxious because I haven’t really scored in the pass game,” said Blaylock. “Basically I’ve just been waiting my turn, I’m surrounded by a lot of athletes.”
Muir quarterback Trey Gamble also had a solid game, completing 15 of 29 passes for 217 yards and a touchdown.