2007 Season

There was a changing of the guard yesterday as the Father Duenas Friars shut out the four-time defending champion George Washington Geckos 28-0 yesterday at GW's football field.

The Friars, who finished the regular season in first place, were carried by running back Joaquin Pangelinan, who finished the game with three touchdowns and rushed for 189 yards on 18 carries.

The Geckos came out in the opening quarter running the ball and they were able to reach the Friars 15-yard line, but on a fourth-and-long situation quarterback Theodore Nelson's pass, intended for Kenneth Karosich, was dropped giving the Friars the ball deep in their own territory.

After a Friars punt the Geckos picked up where they left off penetrating the red zone yet again, behind strong running by Kyle Reyes, who finished the first quarter with 40 yards.

The Friars caught a break as Jonathon Pablo picked off Nelson to force the touchback, shifting the momentum in the Friars favor.

Prior to Pablo's interception -- his first of two in the game -- the Friars offense struggled finishing the first quarter with negative two yards on the ground. Pangelinan took action and scampered for 29 yards to breathe life into the Friars offense. With 6:45 left to play before halftime, Pangelinan picked up his first rushing touchdown off an 11-yard run. Jason Baza's kick put the Friars up 7-0 going into the break.

The Friars continued to dominate in the third quarter, this time the defense showed its prowess. Linebacker Timothy Perez shot the gap and forced a Geckos fumble. Perez quickly fell on the ball, giving the Friars the pigskin on the Geckos 9-yard line. Pangelinan went to work as he ran in from four yards out to add to the lead. Baza's kick put the Friars up 14-0.

FD continued its dominance on the ground late in the third. Pangelinan picked up 45 yards to the Geckos 15-yard line. Pangelinan's run set the stage for quarterback Will Williams' 13-yard touchdown run. Baza, who was perfect for the day, split the uprights to add to the Friars lead, 21-0, with 41 seconds left in the third quarter.

After a Geckos three-and-out, the Friars turned to Pangelinan again off a delay in which he faked a Geckos defender and turned on the speed down the left sideline before stepping out at the 1-yard line for a huge 41-yard gain.

Pangelinan finished what he started busting in from one yard out, Baza nailed his fourth and final PAT to extend the Friars lead to 28-0, with 8:57 left to play in the game.

The two teams battled back and forth for the remainder of the game. With a little under two minutes to play and the Friars with the ball, Friars fans were on the edge of their seats watching the seconds tick off the scoreboard.

After running several plays and cutting into the seconds, the 10-second countdown began. When the final second ticked off the clock, the traditional Queen hit "We Are the Champions" played from the Friars sidelines as players, coaches and fans hugged each other in joyous celebration.