SAN BERNARDINO — It was a dominant, full-team effort that helped the Aquinas football team to remain undefeated in Ironwood League play after handing the Cerritos Valley Christian its first loss of the season with a 42-0 shutout victory. Valley Christian Oliver Boateng (1) hits Aquinas Isaiah Qoroya (20) before he can field a punt in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas middle linebacker Mike Davis (44) tackles Valley Christian Tyson Mcneese (22) on a run in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Champ Brown (22) breaks free from Valley Christian Oliver Boateng (1) on a first down run in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas defends stop Valley Christian Tyson Mcneese (22) in the backfield in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas outside linebacker Brock Sailor (28) hits Valley Christian quarterback Liam Sweeney (2) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Taniela Koto (51) lifts Aquinas Champ Brown (22) after his touchdown run against Valley Christian in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Charlie Reyes (17) scores on a pick-six against Valley Christian in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Charlie Reyes (17) celebrates his pick-six with Aquinas Kenneth Crews (32) against Valley Christian in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas middle linebacker Anthony Uribe (41) hits Valley Christian Lucas Witt (43) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Valley Christian Oliver Boateng (1) returns a kickoff against Aquinas in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas defenders stop Valley Christian Karsen Wesley (47) after the catch in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas head coach Jordan Brusig in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Isaiah Qoroya (20) stops Valley Christian Lucas Witt (43) after the catch in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas defenders stop Valley Christian Karsen Wesley (47) after the catch in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Isaiah Qoroya (20) breaks free from Valley Christian Oliver Boateng (1) on punt return in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Charlie Reyes (17) breaks free from Valley Christian Max Douglas (28) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Valley Christian Dylan Teays (17) and Valley Christian Cole Hefner (32) tackle Aquinas Champ Brown (22) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Valley Christian quarterback Liam Sweeney (2) passes the ball against Aquinas in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Champ Brown (22) runs away from Valley Christian Lucas Witt (43) for a first down in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas Isaiah Qoroya (20) and Aquinas outside linebacker Brock Sailor (28) tackle Valley Christian Lucas Witt (43) after the catch in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas cheerleaders cheer as the home coming queen is announced during halftime of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas cheerleaders perform during halftime of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Valley Christian Oliver Boateng (1) hits Aquinas Isaiah Qoroya (20) before he can field a punt in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Aquinas middle linebacker Mike Davis (44) and fellow players stop Valley Christian Karsen Wesley (47) in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Show Caption1 of 26Valley Christian Oliver Boateng (1) hits Aquinas Isaiah Qoroya (20) before he can field a punt in the first half of the Ironwood League football game in San Bernardino on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) Expand With primary running back Jusyis “Jojo” Solis out with an injury, sophomore running back Champ Brown set the tone early in his opportunity for a full workload, rushing for 53 yards on his first touch and completing the drive with a 6-yard touchdown on the following play to give Aquinas (5-2 overall, 2-0 in league) the lead. Brown set up another scoring opportunity in the third quarter, breaking two tackles to find 44 yards of open field and scoring a 5-yard touchdown on the next play. Brown finished the game with 152 yards rushing on 12 carries. “With Jojo being out and hurt, (Champ) can really show us that he can take on a full game,” Aquinas coach Jordan Brusig said. “We’re excited about the future with him and he’s going to do everything he needs to do to be successful.” Falcons senior Malachi Jones complimented Brown’s rushing effort with three touchdowns. Jones connected for two 60-yard passing touchdowns and one 34-yard rushing touchdown. Jones finished the game with 161 all-purpose yards. Aquinas’ defense was dominant, holding Valley Christian (6-1, 1-1) to 87 yards from the line of scrimmage and 14 total yards rushing. Finding the back field on over half of their plays, they combined for 12 tackles for loss and pressured the Defenders quarterback into 14 incomplete passes and two interceptions. “It’s always nice to pitch a shutout,” Brusig said. “Each and every week they’re taking a step in the right direction and I’m really happy about that.” “We were just swarming the ball,” said sophomore linebacker Mike Davis, who had double digit tackles. “We look sharp, but we have some things we can work on. But as a team right now, it looks very promising (for league play).” It was the second shutout of the season for Aquinas after blanking Notre Dame on Sept. 19, while Valley Christian had not been shutout since facing Aquinas last season. “We went through this a lot last year,” Defenders coach Brendan Chambers said. “Hopefully we learn from this and no matter what we’re facing or what we’re up against we go out there and compete. I didn’t feel like we did that tonight.” Related Articles High School Sports | IE Varsity’s football wrap-up: Stories, scores and photos from Week 7 games High School Sports | Murrieta Valley football team shows resilience and overpowers Chaparral High School Sports | Citrus Valley football shuts out Redlands High School Sports | Kody Shinar and defense help Ramona football team pull away from Norte Vista High School Sports | Hemet football beats Hillcrest to remain unbeaten Aquinas remains tied at the top of the Ironwood League standings after Friday’s victory, alongside Village Christian (3-4, 2-0) following its 64-22 victory over Capistrano Valley Christian on Friday. Despite the lopsided victory, Aquinas will continue to look toward improving to stay atop the league. “The thing I love most about Valley Christian is that they are a fundamental football team,” said Brusig. “Just because the score doesn’t reflect that doesn’t mean you’re not playing good football. They do things that make us make mistake. And if they had success with it, someone else is going to have success with it too, so we need to learn from those things.”