It won't decide the championship in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League, but it could determine Branham's future prospects in the 2003 campaign.

The Bruins will travel to Andrew Hill on Nov. 7, 2:45 p.m., to take on the Falcons in a key Santa Teresa Division game. Branham is 7-1 for the year and 3-1 in the division following a rousing 42-3 win over Prospect last weekend, and Hill is 5-3 overall and also 3-1 in the division. With a win, the Bruins could virtually lock up no worse than a second-place finish in the division and would keep their Central Coast Section playoff hopes alive.

"This is a very big game for us," said Branham coach David Cardoza as he looks ahead to Saturday's match-up. "If we win this one, it would certainly improve our chances [of making CCS]."

There is no automatic playoff berth for the Santa Teresa Division runner-up, but Branham's solid record could put the Bruins in position to pick up one of the at-large berths for the post-season.

Of course, the Bruins—who finish the regular season at home against Overfelt on Nov. 14—could still get a share of the division championship if Leland (7-1, 4-0) falters against either Prospect or Lincoln in the last two weeks of play.

It was another big day by senior running back Andre Ingram that sparked Branham to its big win over Prospect last weekend. It was homecoming for the Bruins, and Ingram celebrated with eight carries for 159 yards and a couple of touchdowns.

Ingram scored in the first quarter on runs of 74 and 48 yards and that set the tempo for the day.

"They started off pretty strong—they had a good drive early in the game," said Cardoza of Prospect. "But on our third play from scrimmage Andre went 74 yards."

Junior quarterback T.J. DeStefano accounted for a couple of scores for the Bruins, running 11 yards for a TD and tossing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Steven Lowrey. Cameron Pickering scored on a 5-yard run and Marc Martinez scored on a 3-yard blast. Louis Sakoda booted six extra points.

"Overall, the team played very well," said Cardoza. "Our offensive line had a good day. They played solid."

Leading the charge up front were guards Chad Christiansen, a sophomore, and Peter Casey, tackles Joey Sanchez and Matt Haro and center A.J. Tyler.

"We rushed the ball well," added the coach, whose club ran up 304 yards on 42 carries. "It was a good overall team performance."

The coach praised the work of senior linebacker Josh Lagod and added that Pickering, Kenny Chadwick and Robbie Reeser all played well defensively.

"The defense played well," said Cardoza.

Leigh wins big

In other local action, Leigh rolled to a 46-0 victory over Gunderson in Mt. Hamilton Division play. The Longhorns improved to 3-5 for the season and to 2-3 in the division, keeping their playoff hopes flickering.

Junior quarterback Kiel Trudeau, an Almaden Valley resident, sparked the Longhorns to the win, completing 10 of 20 passes for 159 yards and one touchdown.

His TD toss was a 39-yarder to his favorite target, senior wide receiver Tom Bingham. The touchdown reception was one of six catches for 114 yards to Bingham in the win.

The passing combo had a big day a week earlier in a 30-27 win over Independence. Trudeau completed 25 of 37 passes for 400 yards, including a 73-yard touchdown pass to Bingham, who finished the night with 14 catches for 300 yards.

Leigh will try to even its league record this week when the Longhorns host Santa Teresa on Nov. 7, 7 p.m. A week later the Longhorns will visit unbeaten Oak Grove.