SANTEE – While Patrick Henry coach Mike Williams was being urged to perform a postgame rap song – not a bad impromptu rendition, either – running back Bill Dabbert indicated a dance step from another era was the catalyst to the Patriots' 24-12 victory over West Hills on Friday night in both schools' season opener.

“Stairs, hills and bunny hops across the field,” said Dabbert, referring to the Patriots' grueling summer conditioning drills. “Seven reps of everything. Every day. They just tear you up.

“Give credit to conditioning coach Terry Naughton. He had us getting up at 5:30 every morning and all that hard work is really paying off.”

Case in point was a late defensive stand deep in Patrick Henry territory, followed by an 81-yard touchdown sprint by Dabbert to turn a five-point game into the 24-12 final.

With 10 third-year varsity seniors and 20 overall, Williams credited the win to his side's maturing from a disappointing 4-5 season in 2007.

“The last two years, we'd have given up that last score and lost the game,” Williams said. “That's what 20 seniors will do for you.”

Henry's 17-9 lead early in the fourth quarter was trimmed to five after West Hills' Levi Jacob boomed a 45-yard field goal. Then the Wolf Pack got the ball back with 6:05 remaining and began what would wind up as a 14-play drive.

On third-and-5 and then fourth-and-5 from the 16-yard line, two incomplete passes – the first broken up by Henry's Peter Hoffman – gave the ball back to the Patriots, and Dabbert reeled off his highlight run to give him 171 yards on 12 carries.

Henry quarterback Darrin Alix added 85 yards on 19 rushes, plus 87 passing yards, completing 7-of-18 passes with one interception. Duante Jones caught five of those for 86 yards and a 20-yard touchdown to open the scoring in the first quarter. Henry finished with 347 total yards to West Hills' 280.

“That QB's tough,” West Hills coach Casey Ash said. “He's a lot like (Scripps Ranch QB Tate) Forcier. He's got a lot of the same qualities. That receiver (Jones) is as good as any we'll see all year.”

After a sluggish first half, quarterback Joe Roberts lit a fire under the West Hills offense. He finished 22-of-44 for 170 yards.

“That second half was a big step forward,” said Ash, whose team won the Grossmont North League last season before losing to Helix in the CIF Division II quarterfinals. “(Roberts) kept giving us a chance. I didn't think we'd throw 44 times all season.”