RENO - The South Tahoe Vikings invaded Grizzly Field for their season-opener on Friday and were ready and optimistic, shouting encouragement to each other on the sideline.
But it was the Galena Grizzlies who were the ones who divided and conquered, mauling the Vikings 47-0 to put their 24-8 loss to Shadow Ridge last week behind them.
The Grizzlies got off to a 19-0 first-quarter lead and outgained the Vikings offensively, 358-78 in the non-conference game.
"We were coming off a tough one last week (against Shadow Ridge)," said fourth-year Grizzlies coach Steve Struzyk. "We worked 'em hard (in practice) this week and it showed. They really got after it in their first home game. South Tahoe has great numbers. We have to get after it week by week."
Actually, South Tahoe's roster was a little inflated because it couldn't field a junior varsity team and thus had 54 players suited up. But it wasn't a matter of having numbers alone when it came to stopping the Grizzlies, especially on the ground.
The Grizzlies chewed up 277 yards rushing on 45 attempts. Junior running back Jimmy Sargent led the way, racing for 105 yards on 17 carries, and scored three first-half touchdowns.
"That's something we expect out of him all year long," Struzyk said of Sargent, who scored two first-quarter touchdowns only 12 seconds apart to give Galena a 19-0 lead. "That's what we expect from him no matter who we play. We've been waiting for him to be the feature back for the last three years."
Grizzlies quarterback Jacob Anderson threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to Steve Blackhart for a 6-0 lead at 7 minutes, 56 seconds of the first quarter. Chris Ewald missed the extra point and Anderson's 2-point conversion failed on Sargent's first touchdown.
The Grizzlies had a 19-0 lead when they got the ball on the Vikings' 2-yard line following a bad snap on a punt, but the South Tahoe defense kept Galena out of the end zone until the first play of the second quarter, when Sargent scored from a yard out for a 26-0 lead.
"We were well prepared for this team," said first-year Vikings coach Mike Gorman, "but Galena ran in up the C-(center) gap every play. I kept saying, 'C-gap, C-gap, C-gap.' If we could've controlled that, it would've been closer. I don't know that we would have won, but it would've been closer."
Anderson went 5-of-8 for 81 yards and two touchdowns in two quarters of play. He found wideout Jacob Parkinson on a six-yard pass for a 33-0 first-half lead.
Galena outgained South Tahoe 242-51 in first-half offense, including 161-34 rushing.
South Tahoe finished the game with 55 yards on 30 carries. Quarterback Anthony Stagnaro was held to 23 yards passing, completing 7-of-10 passes.
"The defense to a person played terrible," Gorman said. "We have 1,200 pounds of beef up front. I call them 'super-sized' for a reason. But their blocking and tackling just couldn't overcome (Galena's) technique.
"I was pleased with our attitude and effort. They tried. Galena had a lot of long drives, but we had three lost fumbles on snaps. Galena is a good football team and a great football program. Struzyk told me it takes time. I know it takes time. I'm still very positive that we can probably win some games at home."
Galena also got a 1-yard touchdown run from junior Jake Hess and an 8-yard touchdown run from Dave Demeritt for a 47-0 third-quarter lead.
Galena did not score in the fourth quarter.