The Wolfpack lost Friday night’s homecoming game against a strong Chino Hills team 57-12. After last week’s excellent display and upset over Damien, Claremont was confident they could avoid mistakes and hold firm on the defensive side of the ball. But the Sierra League’s 2^nd place Huskies put their foot on the gas early, and never looked back.

Right from the opening kickoff, CHS showed their tendency for major errors. Claremont’s kick-returner caught the ball, ran a few yards forward, and attempted a lateral pass to a teammate. Claremont then dropped the lateral while still standing in the end zone, and Huskies players bottled it up for a safety.

Down 2-0 after the first play, Claremont kicked the ball to Chino Hills. The Huskies drove down the field, and 2 minutes into the game scored again. Chino Hills dialed up a simple power run on the 1-yard line for a touchdown. Claremont now faced an 8-0 deficit after stopping the 2-point conversion attempt.

Claremont went 3-and-out on the next possession and punted to Chino Hills. The Wolfpack gained some momentum back when outside linebacker Stan Reeder batted the Huskies quarterback’s short pass into the air for an interception. After Claremont took back possession, quarterback Craig Myers checked down to running back Cecil Fleming in the flat. With blockers ahead of him, Fleming scampered 40 yards down the sideline for a touchdown.

The elation was short-lived, however. Chino Hills scored again on their next drive to make it 15-6. During the 2^nd quarter, the Huskies picked Myers off in consecutive possessions and converted each of these turnovers into touchdowns. The rest of the game continued down this path, with Claremont’s defense giving up huge chunks of yardage on the ground and through the air. In the 3^rd quarter, Myers hit wide receiver Baron Franklin for a 10-yard touchdown. It proved to be only consolation, as the Huskies romped to their 5^th victory of the season and 2^nd in league.

Claremont’s record drops to 3-5 with the loss, but the Wolfpack are still in a 4-way tie for the 3^rd CIF-SS playoff spot in the Sierra League. Next up is a hot Charter Oak team next Friday, October 26. The Wolfpack will have 2 more games to make a push for the playoffs.

See our complete sports report in our next edition.

—Chris Oakley

sports@claremont-courier.com