As the ball sailed through the uprights, and the clock struck zero, the Encinal Jets had done something they hadn’t done in nine years — secured a place in the North Coast Section championship. Senior John Brindley’s 17-yard field goal gave No. 1 seed Encinal an enthralling 24-21 win over No. 4 seed De Anza High of Richmond last Friday night at Willie Stargell Field in Alameda.
“I just zoned everything out, took my steps and kicked the ball,” Brindley said. “I kicked it. I just waited, and then I didn’t know how to react after. I just ran around.”
On June 28, faith and community intersected at a trailblazing event! Myself, Pastor Henry Bens, along with the Rehoboth Christian Fellowship Church the Encinal High School Jets football team and its head coach Keith Minor, collaborated in a wonderful community event. Twenty Encinal student athletes worked off some community service hours by helping the Rehoboth Church family in a “Clean Up” day. They moved furniture, boxes and many items to help make room for Rehoboth’s free academic tutoring in math and English, which starts in the fall.
The Encinal Jets have been eliminated from the North Coast Section (NCS) Div. III playoffs after a 28-0 loss to Bishop O’Dowd of Oakland last Saturday, Nov. 19, on the road.
The match up pitted the West Alameda County Conference (WACC) Shoreline League champion (Encinal) against the WACC Foothill League champion (Bishop O’Dowd). Encinal moved down to the Shoreline League from the Foothill League before the start of the season.
