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On a windy Saturday night at Santa Rosa High School's Ernie Nevers Field, Sonoma Valley High School's varsity football boys opened their Sonoma County League season with a solid first-half effort and held a 7-0 halftime lead over a hosting Windsor team.

But on the blistery evening, the Dragons couldn't generate any second-half offense, forcing the defense to spend too much time on the field and Windsor, which made a late-week switch to a double-wing offense because of injuries, ground out two touchdown drives pulling out a 14-7 win. After Windsor ate up the first half of the opening quarter with a long drive that the Dragons eventually stopped without giving up a point, they had their first possession end on the third play with an interception.

Sonoma finally broke the scoreless tie in the second quarter when, after the Jaguars were flagged for pass interference on standout senior wide receiver Tyler Rose, senior Mario Gomez had a two-yard touchdown run, and senior placekicker Jordan Winslow converted the extra-point kick for what would be a 7-0 halftime lead. In the first half, Sonoma's offense moved the ball well on the ground, with sophomore running back Yahya Muslim gaining a majority of his 88 yards rushing, which included a 39-yard run.

But the offense bogged down in the second half, with the running-game slowed and the passing game affected by the wind that aided the three interceptions by Windsor, which finally wore down the Dragons' defense with its quirky running offense that didn't complete a pass.

"We didn't hear about Windsor switching its offense until that morning and I had to draw up some last-minute adjustments after we practiced for their regular offense all week. Give Windsor credit for making the switch pay off, but it turns the game into a scrum in the long run and players don't improve their football skills playing with it or against it," said Sonoma defensive coordinator Mike Mulas. The Dragons (2-3 overall record, 0-1 SCL) will attempt to break into the SCL win column when they host longtime league rival Healdsburg this Friday night, Oct. 9, at Arnold Field, with the junior varsity starting at 5 and the varsity kicking off at 7:30 p.m.

Sonoma's junior varsity football team, still slowed by injuries and illness, ended up losing 34-0 to a good Windsor squad.

The freshman Dragon gridders - who host Windsor at 5 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 8, at Arnold Field - dropped a 24-12 decision to visiting Rancho Cotate last Thursday, with both of Sonoma's touchdowns being scored on 70-yard kickoff returns by Johnny Amandoli.

Dragons of the Week

The Dragons of the Week in Sonoma's 14-7 SCL-opening loss to Windsor Saturday night in Santa Rosa were Mike Benson, Zach Prohoroff and Dominic DeMartini.

Benson, a 5-foot, 10-inch, 160-pound senior defensive back, turned in a solid performance with his tackling and pass defense, which included an interception.

Prohoroff, a 6-0, 250-pound junior lineman, stepped up with his strongest effort of the season on the offensive line.

DeMartini, a 5-8, 165-pound senior linebacker, had his second straight standout game on defense and, after making 14 tackles against Dublin the week before, he registered 10 tackles against the Jaguars.

The Dragons of the Week are sponsored by Eraldi's Men's Wear and Shoes, and Broadway Market.

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