The Dana Hills High football team began its season with a low-scoring, 10-6 home victory over Las Vegas Desert Oasis High last Friday, Aug. 22.
The Dolphins (1-0) leaned on senior running back Radley Geiss, who powered the offense with 212 yards on 28 carries, averaging 7.6 yards per attempt against the Diamondbacks (1-1).
Senior running back Radley Geiss powered the Dana Hills offense with 212 yards on 28 carries during the Dolphins’ season-opening, 10-6 home victory over Desert Oasis High of Las Vegas on Friday, Aug. 22.
Photo: Don August
Senior kicker Devin Meyer Zu Drewer put the first points on the board, drilling a 38-yard field goal. Late in the second quarter, Dana Hills struck again. Sophomore quarterback Carter Anderson, making his varsity debut, launched a 60-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver James Leicester to push the lead to 10-0 at halftime.
Desert Oasis answered in the third quarter with a touchdown, but the Diamondbacks’ two-point attempt failed, keeping Dana Hills ahead by four. From there, the Dolphins leaned on Geiss and the defense to run out the clock.
“He’s extremely strong and in great shape,” Dana Hills head coach Tony Henney said about Geiss. “Felt as the game progressed, he was just getting stronger.”
Geiss is coming off a 1,419-yard, 17-touchdown season in 2024 and looks poised for another big year.
The quarterback position was one of the main question marks coming into the season, and Anderson won the starting job over senior Tommy Moro. Anderson completed 8 of 22 passes for 102 yards in his first start. When Dana Point Times asked Henney about his quarterback’s performance, the coach said Anderson showed poise throughout the game.
“Things really didn’t go well for him — there weren’t a lot of easy access throws,” Henney said. “But he didn’t fall apart emotionally or anything like that, so I was proud of him for that.”
Leicester reminded everyone why he’s the Dolphins’ No. 1 pass receiving option. He finished with 102 yards on four receptions, including the long touchdown that Henney called a “hell of a play.” Leicester is coming off a 918-yard, 13-touchdown campaign and looks set to be the go-to option again.
While the offense had its struggles, the defense carried the night. Linebackers junior Eduardo Castellano and senior William Reardon each recorded 10 tackles. Senior defensive back Nicholas Newsom snagged a crucial interception in the fourth quarter.
In his fifth season as Dana Hills High’s head football coach, Tony Henney had the Dolphins ready to play during their season-opening 10-6 win over Desert Oasis High on Friday, Aug. 22.
Photo: Don August
“Offensively, it wasn’t our best night; the defense really held things together for us,” Henney said. “I was really proud of those guys as a group.”
The coach acknowledged that the team didn’t play particularly well, but still took care of business.
Next up, Dana Hills will host El Modena High (0-1) this Friday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. The Vanguards reached the second round of last year’s Division 4 playoffs and are coming off a 35-21 loss to Troy High.
The team struggled on the ground, averaging 2.8 yards per carry, and relied on junior quarterback Ethan Sorenson’s arm. He threw for 236 yards against the Warriors, with three receivers having more than 60 receiving yards.
Henney emphasized that the team will need a sharper performance to defeat El Modena. Last season, the Dolphins rocketed to a school-record 8-0 start before losing their final two regular-season games and then advanced to the semifinals of the CIF-SS Division 6 playoffs for the first time since 1991.