The quarterfinal clash between the Van Nuys Wolves and Taft Toreadors resembled an unpredictable roller coaster ride. It was undeniably entertaining, but marred by mistakes from the outset. Both teams combined for seven turnovers in the first half alone—making for a chaotic yet captivating contest with Van Nuys edging Taft, 59-56.

Temperatures dipped to 50 degrees at game time as Van Nuys head coach Ken Osorio rallied his team, encouraging them to stick with their season-long approach. However, things quickly took a wild turn. A pooch kick for an opening kickoff caught Taft off-guard. Wolves senior Louis Welling-Belli seized the opportunity, scooping up the loose ball and racing to the Taft 29-yard line. Despite great field position, Wolves’ junior quarterback Carlos Herrera struggled with accuracy early on and Van Nuys turned the ball over on downs.

Taft’s first-year head coach Thomas Randolf emphasized he wanted his boys to play within themselves, warning against trying to do too much. However, on their third play from scrimmage, junior quarterback Nathan Swinson did just that, forcing a pass that Van Nuys junior linebacker William Sizemore intercepted. The Wolves immediately capitalized, with Herrera finding junior receiver Marlon Figueroa for a 28-yard touchdown strike.

Taft’s struggles continued after a promising 16-yard run by senior Ledgend Wilson, he fumbled on his next carry and the ball was recovered by the omnipresent Welling-Belli. Herrera scored on a keeper, putting the Wolves up 14-0 less than three minutes into the game. After another ineffective Taft drive, Van Nuys continued to press their advantage. Herrera launched a deep pass downfield, connecting with none other than Welling-Belli, who made the contested catch and powered his way into the red zone. Herrera then ran it in for his second touchdown, pushing the score to 21-0 with over six minutes left in the first quarter.

Though stunned, Taft was no stranger to comebacks, something Osorio was quite aware of. Randolf strives for his Toreadors to find consistency, “We need to learn to play four quarters.” A challenge that loomed large with Van Nuys outscoring Taft 41-7 in the first and third quarters. But it was a game of runs. And Taft’s counterattack started when senior running back AJ Simms swept right with a handoff and tiptoed down the sideline for a much-needed 52-yard touchdown. The first quarter closed with Van Nuys leading 21-7.

The Toreadors stayed hot to start the 2nd quarter as senior linebacker Darrius Taylor sacked Herrera deep in Van Nuys territory, forcing a punt. Swinson then found senior wideout Jayden Green on a fade route for an 18-yard score, tightening the game at 21-14. Taft’s remarkable turnaround continued when junior middle linebacker Adam Karchmer stripped Figueroa after a handoff, leading to a Taylor scoop-and-score. A missed extra point left Taft trailing by one, 21-20 with 10:54 remaining in the 2nd quarter. 

While the Wolves’ offense struggled to gain momentum, their defense made a pivotal statement just before halftime. On a misfired screen pass by Swinson, Wolves junior Jeremy Moreno plucked the ball out of the air and strolled into the end zone, extending Van Nuys’ lead to 28-20. With just 13 seconds remaining in the half, Taft regained possession at their own 3-yard line. Instead of playing it safe, Swinson improbably connected with Green on back-to-back deep passes of 53 and 44 yards, resulting in a touchdown. The two-point conversion attempt fell short, sending the teams to halftime with Van Nuys clinging to a 28-26 lead.

When the teams returned for the second half, Osorio’s squad engaged in a quick warmup but, puzzlingly, Taft remained idle on the sideline awaiting the restart of play. This was a tactical misstep for the Toreadors, particularly on a chilly night, as the Wolves seized the momentum with Herrera dominating Taft’s defense with five consecutive keepers for 61 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown. A missed PAT left the score at 34-26.

Taft squandered a bruising kick return by Wilson that set them up near midfield and had to punt. The Wolves continued to focus solely on their ground game. “Second half we wanted to make sure we ran the ball,” Osorio explained. “(Taft) was giving us a look and we wanted to take advantage of that.” Figueroa contributed 31 rushing yards on the drive, highlighted by a tackle-breaking run up the gut for a 12 yard touchdown that pushed the advantage to 41-26 Van Nuys with 5:26 left in the 3rd quarter.

While the Wolves leaned heavily on their ground game, Taft placed all their hopes on Swinson’s arm. Unfortunately, the junior started the second half cold, completing just 1 of 5 passes for 5 yards across two drives, both ending in punts. Momentum remained firmly with the Wolves when Figueroa returned another Taft punt past midfield. Herrera then completed two short passes in the flat for a first down before Figueroa exploited the now-vulnerable center of Taft’s defense with a powerful 27-yard touchdown run. Herrera connected with Figueroa for a two-point conversion, extending the Wolves’ lead to 49-26. Taft was blanked 21-0 in a disastrous third quarter. 

As the fourth quarter began, Swinson, cool and composed all night, casually took his place in the shotgun and began distributing passes. The drive eventually stalled when Green failed to secure a well-thrown ball. On fourth down, Randolf rolled the dice, but it ended with another throw that missed by inches. 

Herrera fumbled on the Wolves’ next drive, giving Swinson a chance to keep finding his rhythm. Randolph opened up Taft’s playbook, calling two double-reverses, the second culminating in a 24-yard fleaflicker to junior wide receiver Wesley Parvizi, down to the Wolves’ 6-yard line. Swinson then connected with a wide-open Green for a short touchdown pass, reigniting Taft’s hopes and narrowing the score to 49-34 with 10:01 remaining.

With momentum appearing to shift once more, Welling-Belli broke the spell by returning the ensuing kickoff 53 yards to Taft’s 27-yard line. The Wolves ultimately settled for a field goal, as Taft’s defense bent but didn’t break, bringing the tally to 52-34 in favor of the Wolves. 

Junior Erik Koron returned the ensuing pooched kickoff to the Van Nuys 30-yard line and Swinson quickly connected with Green on a deep pass for their fourth touchdown of the night, narrowing the Wolves’ lead to 52-42 with 6:30 remaining. Taft’s onside kick attempt failed and Van Nuys took control of the clock, advancing down the field exclusively via their ground game. Figueroa finally powered his way to a third touchdown of the half, extending the Wolves lead to 59-42 with 2:33 left on the clock. It seemed the Toreadors’ comeback hopes were finished.

Just 20 seconds later, Swinson connected with Parvizi over the middle, who juked defenders and reversed field on his way to a 62-yard touchdown. However, Taft missed the two-point conversion, leaving the score at 58-48 with 2:10 remaining. 

Another onside kick attempt failed, and with no timeouts left, Taft appeared out of options. Inexplicably, Van Nuys chose to run the ball. On the second play, Herrera fumbled, handing Taft a gift recovery. It was like Christmas in November for Taft and Swinson seized the opportunity, completing two passes to Koron—one long and the second short, which went for a touchdown. Swinson then ran in the two-point conversion himself, cutting the deficit to 59-56 with 48.1 seconds left. 

The subsequent onside kick was unsuccessful, and Van Nuys cautiously shifted into victory formation. Thus concluded a wild night of playoff football where nothing came easy.

“When you look at my first year (at Taft), the evaluation is not making the same mistakes the second year, the third year, the fourth year,” Randolph noted. About Swinson, whose statline ran 18 of 35 for 365 yards with two picks and six touchdowns, “There’s not a kid I want with the ball in his hands more than Nathan Swinson. That’s a kid who stays composed (and) knows what he’s doing.” It certainly appears coach Randolph knows what he’s doing and the high-powered Toreadors will be a team to watch out for next year.

For Van Nuys Herrera was a warrior, posting 116 passing yards and 183 rushing yards on 30 carries, accounting for 4 touchdowns. Osorio was cautiously enthusiastic after the game, “We got a lot of stuff to take care of. Tighten up everything but I think our game is solid. We just have to tweak things to make them a little bit tighter. The kids are developing and improving so (we’re) very proud of them.” 

Van Nuys moves on to the Division III semifinal for a rematch against Fulton, who defeated them earlier this season by a score of 23-14.