Northridge hangs tough at Fremont

PLAIN CITY — Northridge quarterback Braden Mitchell has received plenty of attention — deservedly so — during the opening month of the 2007 prep football season. But people are starting to find out his supporting cast is also awfully good.

Mitchell spent most of Northridge's Region 1 tilt with fellow traditional league power Fremont handing the ball off to running backs Alex Froelich and Peni Maka'Afi, and the effect was devastating.

Behind a powerful and stout offensive line, Froelich and Maka'Afi gave Fremont's defense fits all night. Fremont and Northridge traded big plays down the stretch, but the Knights did just enough to remain unbeaten in Region 1 play.

Maka'Afi capped a 98-yard drive inside the final three minutes with a four-yard touchdown burst, and Northridge emerged with a thrilling 31-27 win Friday evening.

Maka'Afi finished with 17 rushes for 118 yards and two touchdowns, while Froelich finished with 18 rushes for 101 yards and two touchdowns.

"Those guys run hard, don't they?" said coach Erik Thompson. "The offensive line did a great job. Froelich threw up like four times on the sideline — I think he had a concussion or something — but he wouldn't come out of the game.

"If we didn't have that running game, it could've been a long night."

Most of Froelich's damage came on the ground, but the tough running back, who appeared to sustain a concussion early in the second half, had two huge late receptions to help the Knights pull out the win.

Derek Monkres, Fremont's talented playmaker, scored to put the Silver Wolves up, 27-24, with 2:45 left in the fourth quarter. Monkres, who lines up at receiver, went in motion and took the handoff before racing 25 yards to the endzone, scoring for the second time in the quarter.

Northridge accidentally downed the ball inside the five-yard line on the ensuing kickoff, and the Knights eventually faced 3-12-2.

That's when things got crazy.

Mitchell, who was stellar on the drive, threw incomplete, but the

referee ruled — much to the dismay of Fremont coach Blaine Monkres — that Fremont had committed pass interference.

On the next play, Mitchell threw a pass down the middle to Froelich for 44 yards, and Froelich, who seemed unaware of where he was afterward, caught another pass one play later for 17 more yards.

From there, Northridge pounded the ball, and Maka'Afi's touchdown came with just 45 seconds left.

"He's a tough sucker," Thompson said of Froelich.

Thompson also heaped praise on his defense, which played extremely well to keep Northridge in the game when its offense turned the ball over early.

"I felt the defense was the key to the game," he said.

Meanwhile, Fremont fell to 0-2 in Region 1. Despite playing relatively well, the Silver Wolves now look unlikely to repeat as league champs.

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