Buhach Colony proves unstoppable against Atwater

ATWATER -- Leon Miles held the Bloss Bowl trophy as he posed for pictures with teammates.

It was as if the Buhach Colony senior didn't want to let go.

Miles earned his time with the trophy with a big night, scoring four touchdowns as the Thunder routed Atwater 49-27 to wrap up a third straight perfect run through the Central California Conference.

"It's amazing," said Miles, who rushed for 82 yards on just nine carries. "Especially for us seniors. It was our last opportunity and we wanted to take advantage of it."

The Falcons (6-4, 2-3 CCC) hadn't given up more than 28 points in a game all season. Buhach Colony scored 35 in the first half.

The Thunder (8-2, 5-0) jumped on their cross-town rivals early with 21 points in the first quarter.

Not wanting to kickoff the ball to Buhach Colony senior Jayce Webster, who had returned a kickoff for a touchdown in three straight games, Atwater's opening kickoff went out of bounds.

Buhach Colony took the ball at its own 35-yard line and needed just two plays to score a touchdown.

Thunder quarterback Joe Marquez hit Cody McWilliams with a 23-yard pass on first down. The next play Miles raced 42 yards on a sweep for his first touchdown.

Atwater just couldn't keep up with the faster Thunder.

The Buhach Colony runners were able to get to the perimeter all night as they broke off long runs.

"We knew they had the best defense," Miles said. "We wanted to prove our O-line could make holes we could run through and we'd make the best of it."

Stefon Gold added 80 yards, including touchdown runs of 7 and 30 yards.

The Thunder racked up 348 yards rushing.

"Our offense has been good all year," Buhach Colony head coach Kevin Swartwood said. "They're defense had only given up (109 points) all year. We ran the ball really well. Our inside and outside runs were working. Joe did a good job of passing the ball."

After picking up just one first down in the first quarter, the Falcons offense came alive in the second quarter.

Quarterback Nathan Duran found Dallas Hoofard for 52-yard touchdown pass that cut the lead to 21-6.

Duran completed 18 of 33 passes for 256 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but also threw three interceptions.

Shane Lambert added two touchdown runs for Atwater, but the Falcons couldn't keep up with the Thunder on the scoreboard.

Both teams will find out today where they'll be seeded in the playoffs.

"I don't know where we'll be seeded," Swartwood said. "I'm hoping we get a top four seed, which would give us two home games."

Leon Miles run sets up touchdown for Buhach Colony.