CLOSER LOOK: JW North’s Ashon Elliott
Take a closer look at Riverside North senior Ashon Elliott and you’ll see a player who sees the beauty in what his team can achieve.
Elliott scored on a long touchdown run in the second half and finished with two rushing TDs and a game-high 153 rushing yards as the Huskies (11-0 overall) toppled Capistrano Valley, 48-21, on Friday, Nov. 5, in a CIF-Southern Section Division 5 first round game.
The 5-foot-8, 170-pound running back/linebacker had runs of 41 and 22 yards in the first half and piled up a 31-yard touchdown run to go with a 7-yard score as the Huskies ran all over their opponents to stay unbeaten.
Elliott is second on the team in carries (51), rushing yards (563) and TDs (12) behind teammate Venasio Mikaele (123-1,236-20), but now is averaging a team-high 11.0 yards per carry.
We caught up with Elliott after the win over Capistrano Valley. He had already taken off his jersey and shoulder pads.
InlandFieldhouse.com: How good does a playoff win feel for this group?
Ashon Elliott: “It feels good. We went through a lot of adversity in this game. We saw that we can come through it and still score these kinds of points against a playoff team. It was a good rout for us. I felt like we really needed this one.”
IF: What about for you? What are your thoughts?
AE: “I feel real good. I just feel like I love my O-line. All the credit to them. I know I run fast and get the touchdowns but I can’t do that without the O-line. The O-line is just beautiful. It’s really beautiful.”
IF: You and Venasio Mikaele have a thunder-and-lightning thing going on. What do you two call it?
AE: “Thunder and lightning! We’ve never called ourselves that but we’ve heard the announcers call us that and it’s perfect for us. He’s the one that’s gonna ground-and-pound you (and) I’m the one that’ll break one. Then he’s going to ground-and-pound you again. It’s beautiful how it works.”
INLAND FIELDHOUSE 