Pomona senior Isaac Marquez (27) fights his way into the end zone while being tackled by Columbine senior Jake Allen (14) and sophomore Mikey Griebel in the first quarter Friday at Jeffco Stadium. Marquez had three touchdowns in the Panthers’ 21-14 victory in the second round of the Class 5A playoffs. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
LAKEWOOD — Pomona senior Isaac Marquez seemed to be everywhere Friday night at Jeffco Stadium.
The running back, wide receiver and defensive back scored three touchdowns to help the No. 1 seed Panthers to a 21-14 victory against Class 5A Jeffco League rival Columbine. The win advanced Pomona (9-2) into the state quarterfinals.
Next up for Pomona is a date with the winner of Mountain Vista/Valor Christian. The Golden Eagles and Eagles had a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday night. The Panthers will be the home team in the quarterfinal game.
Columbine junior quarterback Jake Lowry (10) is tackled by Pomona junior Dillon Pace (2) during the first half Friday at Jeffco Stadium. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
“He (Marquez) is a stud. He is one of those players you have to key on every single game,” said Columbine sophomore Mikey Griebel of Marquez who had 78 yards rushing and 41 yards receiving. “He is there go-to guy. That was obvious tonight.”
Marquez scored on a 1-yard run on a fourth-down play midway through the third quarter to give the Panthers a 13-7 lead. The game was tied 7-7 at halftime.
A botched punt attempt by Columbine set Pomona up on the Rebels’ 9-yard line prior to Marquez’s second touchdown of the game.
“We had to punch it in,” Marquez said of the go-ahead touchdown run. “Our offensive line did a great job of pushing, making a hole and I punched it in.”
Marquez’s first touchdown came on a 17-yard touchdown catch from senior quarterback Justin Roberts in the first quarter. Columbine’s lone touchdown in the first half came on a “fumblerooski” that senior Austin Norton scored from 30 yards out on a fourth-down play.
Pomona extended its lead to 21-7 on a 6-yard touchdown run by Marquez with 3:44 left. However, Columbine quickly answered.
Junior quarterback Jake Lowry threw a pass up for grabs near the sideline to Griebel. The sophomore came down with the ball and raced to the end zone for a 74-yard touchdown catch.
“I just went up and got it,” said Griebel, who had 48 yards rushing to go with his two catches for 95 yards. “Just playing the game I love and making plays.”
Columbine attempted an onside kick, but again, Marquez was at the right place at the right time to recover the kick. The Panthers actually turned the ball over on downs with less than two minutes to play. However, the Rebels couldn’t get a game-tying touchdown.
Pomona was able to put the game away when sophomore Mile Matulik intercepted Lowry with under a minute to play. A couple of kneel downs by Roberts and Pomona punched its ticket to the state quarterfinals.
“We knew it was going to be tough,” Pomona coach Jay Madden said. “We knew Columbine would know our tricks the second time around.”
Pomona freshman Max Borghi rushed for 137 yards and five touchdowns in the Panthers’ conference meeting with rival Columbine on Oct. 11. Pomona had to overcome a halftime deficit to rally for a 47-28 victory. Borghi had 19 carries for 112 yards Friday night.
Columbine’s grinding rushing attack had success the first go-around with Pomona three weeks ago. Norton had 176 yards on the ground and Lowry posted 120 yards. Both had a pair of touchdowns in the loss.
“Columbine is the king of the South (Jeffco),” Matulik said. “They are a great team and a great school. They have kids that love to play.”
Columbine junior quarterback Jake Lowry drops back to pass during the first half Friday at Jeffco Stadium. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
The Rebels (5-6) finished their regular season with a sub-500 record, but easily eliminated Rangeview, 5A South Metro League champion, with a 48-7 victory last week. Griebel had a four-touchdown night for the Rebels and Norton rushed for 169 yards and a touchdown.
“That’s the biggest positive out of tonight,” Griebel said of the Rebels’ young team. “We’ve got more than half our team coming back next year and this will motivate us for next year.”
Pomona had its struggles in its playoff opener last week. The banged up Panthers hung on for a 36-32 win against Arapahoe. Junior Dillon Pace helped bail out Pomona with a 300-plus game on the ground, which included three touchdowns.
Madden was pleased with his defensive effort in the second go-around with Columbine.
“I think this is four years in a row we’ve made it at least to the quarterfinals,” Madden said. “Our kids kind of thought this was a scary game because if you lose they think this season was a failure, even if that’s anything from the truth.”
Pomona freshman Max Borghi (29) runs through traffic Friday at Jeffco Stadium. (Dennis Pleuss)
Columbine senior Austin Norton (6) carries the ball against Pomona on Friday night at Jeffco Stadium. Norton had 17 carries for 86 yards and a touchdown as Pomona took a 21-14 victory. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)