Nick Nuccitelli

Monroe 38, Grant 14--Nick Nuccitelli rushed for 187 yards and two touchdowns and Jesse Jones added 139 yards and three touchdowns as Monroe (4-4, 3-2) ran past Grant at home. Monroe gained 389 yards rushing against Grant (2-5-1, 1-4), which was paced by 120 yards rushing from Di-onte Smith.

A few minutes early for class, running back extraordinaire Nick Nuccitelli plops himself down for what will undoubtedly be an all-too-long lecture on money-market mutual funds or straight-line depreciation. The last-minute preparations for class--asking a fellow student for a pen and hoping, no, praying there won't be a pop quiz--are quickly dropped, however. Two people are talking about him in the front row. They are wondering where this new kid on the gridiron block came from.

A few minutes early for class, running back extraordinaire Nick Nuccitelli plops himself down for what will undoubtedly be an all-too-long lecture on money-market mutual funds or straight-line depreciation. The last-minute preparations for class--asking a fellow student for a pen and hoping, no, praying there won't be a pop quiz--are quickly dropped, however. Two people are talking about him in the front row. They are wondering where this new kid on the gridiron block came from.

Monroe 38, Grant 14--Nick Nuccitelli rushed for 187 yards and two touchdowns and Jesse Jones added 139 yards and three touchdowns as Monroe (4-4, 3-2) ran past Grant at home. Monroe gained 389 yards rushing against Grant (2-5-1, 1-4), which was paced by 120 yards rushing from Di-onte Smith.

Poly 28, Monroe 27--Alfonso Ruelas scored on a four-yard run with 45 seconds remaining to lift Poly (2-3, 2-0), which rallied from a 21-7 third-quarter deficit at Monroe. Poly's comeback spoiled a great effort by Monroe's Nick Nuccitelli, who rushed for 286 yards in 23 carries and scored on runs of 53, three and 63 yards. Cameron Hilton led Poly's ground attack, rushing for 109 yards in the second half and 114 yards overall in 20 carries.

Nick Nuccitelli rushed for 209 yards in 27 carries and scored two touchdowns to lead Monroe High to a 35-6 victory over Gardena on Friday in the first round of the City Section 3-A Division playoffs. Nuccitelli, who played in the fourth quarter after suffering a fractured right hand, scored on runs of one yard and four yards. His shorter run started a decisive 21-point second quarter. He has 1,642 yards rushing this season.

Top performances by area high school football players: PASSING David Lins, Crespi: 26 of 35 285 yards Derek Lemkin, Harvard: 9 of 21 237 Jeff Deno, Franklin: 16 of 33 230 Joe Borchard, Camarillo: 12 of 23 200 Jason Carr, Highland: 10 of 12 18 RUSHING Ronnie Jenkins, Hueneme: 20 carries, 356 yards Antwon Nelson, Chatsworth: 19 for 276 Bryan Wilkins, Moorpark: 40 for 242 Nick Nuccitelli, Monroe: 19 for 212 Larry Reed, Van Nuys: 15 for 203 Jerome Lee, Royal: 18 for 185 RECEIVING Jamie Cerna, Poly:

Senior quarterback Matt Rutter completed eight of 13 passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score Thursday night to lead Reseda High to a 42-14 victory over Monroe in a Valley Pac-8 Conference game. Reseda jumped to a 14-0 lead when Rutter hooked up with tight end Alonso Arreola on a pair of first-half touchdowns. The first covered 24 yards and completed a 10-play, 74-yard opening drive. Five minutes later, Rutter hit Arreola on a 38-yard scoring pass.

Jerry Brown had a field day. And as Brown went, so too, did Taft High in a 53-0 rout of Chatsworth on the Chancellors' home field Friday night in a Northwest Valley Conference game. Brown, a senior, rushed for a career-high 226 yards and four touchdowns in 14 carries, and Taft (4-1 overall, 2-0 in league play) scored on each of its possessions. "Everything was going good tonight," Brown understated. Brown scored the game's first three touchdowns on runs of 35, 19 and six yards.