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Bird lifts Falcons

By: SCOTT BAIR - Staff Writer | Saturday, October 29, 2005 12:39 AM PDT ∞

RANCHO BERNARDO ---- Connor Bird may be a little guy at 5-foot-7 and 171 pounds, but he's not afraid to block. When the Torrey Pines High football team's scatback saw receiver Matt Lambesis streaking toward the end zone in the middle of the field with under 40 seconds remaining and no timeouts, Bird hurried downfield to help block. Instead, he made a play that gave the Falcons a 14-13 upset of top-ranked Rancho Bernardo on Friday night.

Bird recovered Lambesis' fumble in the end zone with 30 seconds to play, and teammate Bill Bennett kicked the game-deciding extra point as the Falcons (7-1, 3-0 Palomar League) took first place in the league.

"Matt made a great catch and an excellent run," Bird said. "I was just there to back him up."

Lambesis, who had four receptions for 87 yards, made a great catch and a number of quality moves to get Torrey Pines (7-1, 3-0) to the brink.

The Falcons' comeback drive began on their 10-yard line with 2:15 remaining and Rancho Bernardo (7-1, 2-1) leading 13-7. Quarterback Hunter Wanket orchestrated a text-book two-minute drill, completing 5-of-7 passes during Torrey Pines' march to the end zone.

Wanket's final throw was risky, but ultimately rewarding.

"Matt was going to run a skinny post to the middle of the field," said Wanket, who completed nine passes for 186 yards. "I saw the safety cheat over to cover Scooter (Belasco) on the outside, I knew Matt would be open. I thought that if I got it to him, Matt could take care of the rest."

Lambesis did, with a little help from Bird.

Torrey Pines' final touchdown was the only score of the second half.

The Falcons scored first on a 27-yard pass from Wanket to Belasco. Rancho Bernardo answered with a 3-yard touchdown run from Richard Caldwell and a pair of Ryan Schmitz field goals.

Running back Nick Pascarella finished with 116 yards on 24 carries, and tight end Will Yeatman had six catches for 84 yards to pace the Broncos. Rancho Bernardo gained 330 yards, but only reached the end zone once, which gave Torrey Pines a chance at a comeback.

"We're disappointed about what happened here tonight, but it's not going to make or break our season," Yeatman said. "We're upset right now, but there are plenty of games left to play. Our goal is to win a (CIF) championship. One loss isn't going to make us lose sight of that."

Contact staff writer Scott Bair (760) 739-6642 or sbair@nctimes.com.