Orange County Prep Saturday : Marina Nips Millikan for First Victory

It was far from pretty, but the way things have been going, Chris Ramsey, Marina High School football coach, wasn’t about to complain about his Vikings’ sloppy play Friday night, not when the they escaped with a 26-25 victory over Long Beach Millikan.

“There were a lot of mistakes, but a win is a win,” Ramsey said after the Vikings finally got into the victory column before a crowd of 1,000 at Westminster High.

“It was a big thing for us to get some offense going, score a touchdown and pick up a win,” Ramsey said. “There were so many positives, I don’t want to think about the negatives.”

The positives included three touchdown runs by Stacy Kagasoff and three big defensive plays by Kevin Magula, including a game-saving tackle when Millikan opted for a two-point conversion late in the fourth quarter.

But once he sees the game films, Ramsey will be reminded of a nightmarish game in which his secondary was burned for three touchdown passes, his offense lost two fumbles and had one pass intercepted, and his special teams allowed two punts to be blocked.

Still, after four straight losses, during which his offense generated only one touchdown, Ramsey has to be encouraged about the Vikings’ chances to defend their Sunset League title when league play begins next week.

Especially considering the fact that a year ago, Marina was 0-5 in nonconference play.

“We’re a game ahead of last year, at least,” Ramsey said.

Kagasoff, who gained 95 yards on 15 carries, including a 25-yard scoring run in the first quarter, is certainly looking forward to league play.

“We were fired up tonight,” Kagasoff, a 170-pound junior tailback, said. “Now that we know what winning feels like, we should be pumped up going into league.”

In addition to his game-saving tackle, Magula blocked Millikan’s first conversion kick attempt and intercepted a pass in the first half.