RIVERSIDE – Dynamic offenses tend to thrive in both the passing and running game, overcoming opposing defenses in a multitude of ways. But coach Mark Carson and the Rio Hondo Prep football team needed just one dynamic player to defeat King 28-7 in CIF Southern Section Division 7 quarterfinals: Noah Penunuri. “He’s a two-way player,” Carson said. “They had a lot of great players. We got a lot of great players. But any fair-minded person would say he’s the best player on the field tonight.” Penunuri’s name could be heard on the King High School stadium loudspeakers almost incessantly, whether it was for a tackle or one of his 24 carries. The junior finished Friday night’s win with 238 rushing yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead score. Yet before Penunuri could record what would eventually be the game-winning TD, he and his team fell behind. The Wolves opened the night with an efficient eight-play, 65-yard drive after the Kares’ opening kickoff went out of bounds. Brian Robinson accounted for 43 yards on his own, the final 21 of which came on the TD. Rio Hondo (10-1 overall) quickly punched back with a 69-yard drive, highlighted by Nathaniel Curtis’ 7-yard rushing touchdown. From there, Penunuri took over. Across the second and third quarters, Penunuri racked up 169 yards and two touchdowns, the first of which was a 67-yard rush on third-and-10 near the end of the first half. “We answered, though, and then got a stop, and (the game) kind of turned, I think, when we scored on the last play of the first half,” Carson said. “But our guys up front did awesome.” Across the game’s final three quarters, Rio Hondo’s defense bailed out its offense after two lost fumbles, stopping King’s (8-4) fourth-down attempts on each drive following the turnovers. “They played great defense and after that first drive. I thought we had some things going, but they buckled down and tightened up and made some things pretty difficult for us,” said King coach Jason McMains. “We just didn’t do a good job adjusting to it.” Rio Hondo linebacker Rainn Pollock iced the game for his team, intercepting quarterback Noah Cuenca and returning it for a touchdown to go up 28-7 with 5:29 to go. “(Pollock’s) a monster on the defense. We call him the Ghost. Nobody sees him,” Penunuri said. Related Articles High School Sports | Vista Murrieta football team shuts down Cajon in Division 3 quarterfinals High School Sports | George Toia sparks Summit football past Huntington Beach, into CIF semifinals High School Sports | San Gorgonio overcomes Grand Terrace, reaches Division 11 football semifinal High School Sports | Murrieta Mesa football tops Northwood to reach CIF-SS Division 6 semifinals High School Sports | Carter upsets Canyon Spring, moves on to football semifinal With the decisive win, Rio Hondo will host West Torrance next week in the Division 7 semifinals. As the Wolves’ season has now reached its conclusion, McMains said he is grateful for his senior class – his first four-year group since taking over the head coaching job at King. “Their whole body of work – like I said, three straight years in the quarterfinals, another eight-win season – the legacy that they’re leaving at King is something that no senior class has really ever done,” McMains said.