NORRIDGE — Coming into Friday’s football game, wide receiver Keith Franklin’s size seemed to be Guerin’s biggest advantage against a stout Ridgewood defense.
The Gators tried to exploit that matchup early. Sophomore quarterback Richie Zacharias threw to the 6-3 junior as he ran a streak down Ridgewood’s sideline in the first quarter, but junior cornerback Mike Ortiz was in perfect position.
Ortiz ran with Franklin — who caught three touchdowns in the previous two games — then attacked the ball in the air and batted it down. Ortiz was flagged for a debatable pass interference penalty on the play, but it foreshadowed a common theme: Zacharias tested Ortiz, only to have the 5-8 cornerback win the matchup in Ridgewood’s 18-7 Metro Suburban East victory.
“I honestly don’t play any different [against taller players],” Ortiz said. “I play them like they’re a normal person. I don’t think anybody out there is better than me, so I just go out there and play my game.”
Ortiz held Franklin to one catch for 11 yards, and he intercepted Zacharias twice. Ortiz even blocked a punt, which rolled out of the end zone for a safety.
The loss eliminated Guerin (3-5, 2-2) from playoff contention while Ridgewood (4-4, 3-1) kept its playoff hopes alive. The Rebels need to win on Oct. 25 at Walther Christian (0-8, 0-4) to become playoff eligible.
Although Ortiz had a great game and Ridgewood’s defense held Guerin to just 32 yards, the Gators were within one touchdown until late in the fourth quarter. Their lone points came on a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown by sophomore middle linebacker Julio Roldan in the second quarter.
Roldan’s score put pressure on Ridgewood’s defense to keep Guerin off the board and make plays, and it did both in the second half.
The defense turned in its best performance of the season, Ortiz and Ridgewood coach Chris Zack agreed, and it was Ortiz’s blocked punt with 8:03 remaining in the fourth quarter that sustained the unit’s focus and energy.
“I just think it helped motivate us and helped us keep going,” said Ortiz, who also plays wide receiver. “Our offense obviously wasn’t getting it done. In the huddle, I told our defense, ‘Let’s do it. Let’s give it all we’ve got.’ ”
Ridgewood sealed its victory when senior Tyler Gil Ramos picked off Zacharias. That set up senior Chris Serna’s 3-yard touchdown run. Serna’s score put the Rebels up 18-7 with 4:14 remaining. Serna ran 22 times for 71 yards, and Ridgewood sophomore Alex Rice had 19 carries for 100 yards.
Ridgewood junior Wojtek Gasienica added field goals of 22, 20 and 28 yards on Friday night.
The Gators continued to fight, however. They got the ball back with 1:25 left and, on the very first play of the drive, Zacharias looked for Franklin once again. Franklin ran an intermediate route and got open, but Zacharias’ throw went off of one of Franklin’s hands and up into the air. Ortiz, who was trailing Franklin, secured his second interception to put an exclamation point on his night.
“He’s our best cover guy,” Zack said. “He’s got great footwork, above average speed and just has that knack for the ball — that it factor.”
Guerin
• Both teams struggled to throw the ball. Zacharias finished 5-for-32 with 40 yards and three interceptions. Rebels junior Chris Jacobsen was 9-for-30 with 92 yards and two interceptions.
• Guerin senior James Cockrell had nine carries for 14 yards. Sophomore Felix King caught two passes for 22 yards.
