Gallery • 13 Photos

Emily Rojas

Senior Kane Rosko runs the ball to try to score a touchdown.

Last Friday night, the varsity football team played against Rio Linda and lost with a final score of 63-35.

“The one thing that our team did very well was playing as a team,” senior Matthew Kortie said. “Over my past 11 years of playing football at Oakmont, this is the strongest brotherhood I have ever played with. We did not take the negative and make them a big deal, we bunkered down and played what we had been coached.”

Within the first four minutes of the game, the Knights scored two touchdowns, and later added another touchdown to end the first quarter with a score of 20-0.

“I think we did good in the areas of staying composed as a team and not giving up despite the score of the game,” junior Andrew Richards said.

Junior James Mintmier and senior Kane Rosko each got a touchdown for the Vikings in the second quarter to gain 14 points. The Knights gained 15 points by the end of the first half.

“We can improve [for] our next game by playing with more intensity than we have been playing,” Kortie said. “Our coaches have given us a great foundation to excel in our skills and play to the best of our ability.”

Even though the Knights had a 23 point lead at the beginning of the second half, the Vikings were not discouraged. They continued to work hard and received 14 points in the third quarter from touchdowns by Detra Jackson and Sean Myles.

“I think that we truly came together on the field, and we poured our hearts onto that field knowing that our friends and family were right behind us,” senior Vraj Shah said.

The energy from the Oakmont crowd did not quiet down throughout the game and they continued to cheer on their team proudly.

“We never lost hope,” sophomore Sammi Landaeta said. “We kept doing chants in the stands for the boys to make sure they never lost hope either.”

In the last quarter, the Knights were not able to gain any more points. The Vikings received seven points after a seven yard rushing touchdown by junior Sean Myles to end the game with a final score of 63-35.

“We can improve by starting hot from the beginning of the game and pound the ball at the opposing team right out of the gates,” Richards said.

Senior night was a bittersweet time for many of the seniors on the football team as this was also their last home game.

“It’s [sad] that this was our last home game, and it was emotional knowing that the hours of hard work and sweat was [over] on this field,” Shah said. “It was also a moment to be proud of for every one of my teammates, coaches, and family [members].”