Following Saturday's 54-36 win at Redwoods in Eureka, College of the
Siskiyous will have a chance to finish the season 5-5 when it hosts Shasta
in the season-finale Saturday at Herschel Meredith Stadium in Weed.
After several losing seasons in a row, a .500 record would be a step in
the right direction for the Eagles, who had 466 yards of total offense
against Redwoods.
Longtime rival Shasta of Redding will come to Weed with hopes of claiming
a spot in a postseason bowl game.
"They can be a really good team," first-year Eagle head coach
Matt Sayre said of Shasta.
The Eagles offense was really good Saturday, as freshman running back
Alex Gaston had 252 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns on runs of 17, 34,
32 and 12 yards.
Tight end Jason Zarate caught 2 touchdown passes of 30 and 19 yards from
quarterback Travis Newman, who returned to the starting lineup after an
injury.
The Eagles also scored on field goals of 23 and 18 yards by Dunsmuir High
School graduate Alper Keskin.
Mount Shasta High School graduate Bryant Stokes, on what he called a "scoop
and score" play, recovered a fumble and returned it for a touchdown
in the first half.
Playing cornerback in the first half, Stokes had "a very good game,"
said Sayre, who also praised safety Scott Yerges.
Though not as stout as they had hoped, the Eagle defense limited Redwoods
to 71 yards rushing and 170 passing yards.
While the Eagle offensive numbers were good, they also gave away some
points, which has been a problem throughout the season.
Sayre said Redwoods scored on a fumble recovery and a pass interception
and scored after recovering a fumbled punt on the 2 yard line.
But the offensive line paved the way for another big day by Gaston, who
finished the week with over 1,400 rushing yards for the season and 18
touchdowns.
Gaston also returned kickoffs for the first time this season, averaging
30 yards on two returns.
Among those opening the holes for the running game were Malakai Pekipaki,
Chris Stallworth, John Stephens, Garrett Butler, Brandon Reynolds and
tight ends Zarate and Grant Morasci.
Zarate scored his first two touchdowns of the season, while Newman completed
12 of 23 pass attempts for 130 yards and no interceptions.
Gaston, whose speed, strength and low center of gravity make him difficult
to bring down, leaped over two would-be tacklers in the backfield on one
play, according to Sayre.
"He makes people look foolish at times one-on-one," Sayre said
of the 5-foot-7, 177 pound Gaston.
The Eagles finished the week 1-3 in Mid-Empire Conference play, while
Shasta, which defeated American River Saturday, is 2-2 in conference and
4-5 overall.
"They've had their ups and downs, similar to us," Sayre said
of Shasta. "They've got a couple real good free safeties and a dangerous
punt returner. It's a rivalry, too. They'll be fired up."