A dominant offense and stifling defense combined to lead the Wildcats to a 37-7 win over visiting Diamond Bar High School Sept. 5, bumping varsity football’s overall record to 2-1.
The Wildcats entered the game hungry for a win after a narrow 21-20 loss against Cypress High School Aug. 29.
According to defensive back Logan King (‘27), the loss against the Centurains “was a wake up call” to focus on the team’s priorities and assignments moving forward.
Similar to their 47-0 season-opening win against Sonora High Aug. 22, the Wildcats dominated from the opening whistle. After the Brahmas received the game’s first possession, outside linebacker Nick Davis (‘27) snagged the ball mid-air for an interception, the Wildcats’ first INT of the season.
Davis’s pick set the tone for the rest of the game. “I feel like the interception fired up the whole team,” Davis said. “Especially after a loss last week, I feel like the interception gave us hope.”
Unable to capitalize with a touchdown, kicker Colby Thuman (‘26) accounted for the first three points of the game by nailing a 26-yard field goal, his first of the season.
At the end of the first quarter, quarterback Gavyn Nicholson (‘27) lofted the ball into the hands of wide receiver Cole Miller (‘26) who was stopped just shy of the goal line. Running back Brandon Bartell (‘27) finished the drive with a quick push for a touchdown, extending the Wildcats’ lead to 10-0.
The second quarter began with a touchdown by running back Kolotolu Liti (‘26) — his sixth score of the season — dragging Brahma defenders into the end zone, tacking on another TD for a 16-0 Wildcats lead.
Nicholson struck again at the end of the first half with a perfectly placed ball to a wide open Jio Kang (‘27), who sprinted into the end zone. The potentially game-sealing touchdown was called back, however, due to a penalty on the play.
It was a slew of penalties that ultimately doomed BOHS against Cypress. Against Diamond Bar, however, the Wildcats played with discipline.
Jake Bryant (‘26) attributed the reduced penalties to the team’s early-season bonding. “We focused on creating a stronger familial bond with each other in our leadership classes,” Bryant said. “Our guys this week started to trust each other and move together with one task in mind.”
For the second time this season, the Wildcats entered halftime with a shoutout.
“The defense was solid [because] the linebackers did their thing and the defensive line held them up,” defensive lineman Julian Crader (‘26) said.
Diamond Bar quarterback Daniel Ribeiro (‘26) was sacked twice, once by linebacker Nolan Santana (‘27) and once by King.
Bryant, Santana, and Luke Carren (’26) led the Wildcats with five tackles each.
Santana told the Wildcat at halftime, “We’re going to keep locking [Diamond Bar] down on defense and we’re going to keep trying to score with Liti.”
Just as Santana predicted, Liti opened the second half with a touchdown — a team-high number seven on the season — as he broke free of Diamond Bar tacklers and lunged into the end zone.
Nicholson said of Liti’s performance: “I was able to trust him to gain us yards when we needed it and knew he could punch it in when we were in the red zone.”
In the fourth quarter, wide receiver Ryan Nero (‘26) sprinted down the Diamond Bar sideline to haul in a pass from Nicholson for another BOHS touchdown, his second of the game. Nero picked up 129 receiving yards, his first triple-digit game of the season.
Nero attributed his career-high receiving yards to his teammates making good blocks. “I think my success came mostly from the o-line because they were able to give Gavyn enough time to find me down the field,” Nero said.
The Brahmas spoiled a Wildcats’ shutout when they managed a lob into the end zone for a touchdown at the end of the fourth quarter.
“We came in with a much better mentality and a sense of humility after last game’s loss,” Kang said. “We kept our heads up, got to work, and it showed out with a big win.”
The Wildcats hit the road Sept. 14 for a game against 1-2 Jurupa Hills in Fontana.
