The young Wildcats, led by Chris Cuthbert's three fumble recoveries and a fourth-quarter drive by the offense, held on to a one-point lead late in the game to advance their season record to 3-1.

For the fourth straight week the offense scored on its opening drive. They marched 59 yards on eight plays, with Alex Ghanavatti, Mike Brienzo and Devin Lopez carrying the ball deep into Trojan territory. Kevin McCarty found Jeremy Bays in the end zone with an 11-yard touchdown pass, and Bays' conversion made it 7-0.

Then the pace of the game picked up. On the second play from scrimmage, Michael Fullbright carried a pitch 65 yards for a Milpitas score, evening the game 7-7.

Ghanavatti answered on the ensuing kickoff with a 90-yard return to put the Wildcats up 14-7.

Cuthbert's first fumble recovery stalled a Trojan drive at the Los Gatos 31-yard line, and, after an exchange of punts, the young Wildcats went to work again, with Ghanavatti carrying three times for 40 yards, including a 2-yard TD burst. Bays' extra point proved crucial, making the score 21-7 at the half.

Milpitas scored in the third quarter on a 50-yard pass and run play. In the fourth quarter, Fullbright struck again with a 70-yard burst through the middle of the line down to the Los Gatos five, where Anthony Garcia ran it in for the Trojans. A bad snap foiled the extra point try, and the Wildcats had a 21-20 lead to protect.

They did just that with a four-minute, 41-yard drive and a defensive stand that stuffed the Trojans' option play on a fourth and nine. Milpitas had one more possession but fumbled into Cuthbert's hands to end the game.

"I was really proud of the way the team played in the fourth quarter when the pressure was on," said coach Dale Gustafson.

The defensive line of Tom Towson, Andrew Stanley, Cuthbert, John Lynch and Keenan Murray and linebackers Eric Chen and Derek Thomas played well, rising to the occasion in crucial situations.