Football: CdM ‘Hacks’ Mustangs

Tony Altobelli

COSTA MESA - For Corona del Mar, it was a trip to paradise, while

for Costa Mesa, it was an old-fashioned trip to the woodshed.

The Sea Kings football team took advantage of five Mustangs’

turnovers and used a solid ground attack for a convincing 37-7 win in

both teams’ Pacific Coast League opener held at Orange Coast College.

Following three tough losses against three tough opponents, the Sea

Kings have won three in a row and have turned their season around.

“I told the kids before the game that there’s no reason to get beat up

if you don’t learn from it,” CdM Coach Dick Freeman said. “One of two

things are going to happen. Either you’ll give up or you’ll become a

better player.”

For CdM senior tailback Blake Hacker, his knowledge paid off to the

tune of 218 yards on 32 carries and two touchdowns.

“I was a little discouraged after our slow start to the season,”

Hacker said. “But we knew how important this game was and we stuck

together. This was a real big win for our program.”

The win gives CdM (3-3), an early view from atop the PCL standings,

while Costa Mesa (4-2), ranked No. 2 in CIF Southern Section Division IX,

heads back to the drawing board.

“We just had way too many silly mistakes out there,” Mesa Coach Jerry

Howell said. “We had too many turnovers, we were outhit and we were

outplayed. We’re just going to have to back to the basics and try to

rebound from this.”

Costa Mesa turned the ball over five times, which led to 14 Sea Kings’

points. Plus, the Mustangs twice had the ball inside the Sea Kings’

10-yard-line, but failed to score.

“We came out and played aggressive,” Sea Kings Coach Dick Freeman

said. “We took advantage of some mistakes on Costa Mesa’s side and we got

an early jump on them.”

After a sloppy start to the game on both sides, CdM settled down and

put together a solid, 10-play, 62-yard drive, which led to a 2-yard

touchdown run from Hacker.

“The offensive line was great tonight,” Hacker said. “I just kept my

head up and my legs moving out there.”

Following a Costa Mesa fumble, CdM scored again when quarterback Dylan

Hendy found the end zone on a 7-yard quarterback keeper, giving CdM a

14-0 advantage early in the second quarter.

CdM actually had opportunities to score even more points, thanks to

Mustangs’ turnovers, but could not capitalize.

Hendy found receiver Steven Ward for a 19-yard touchdown strike and

CdM had a commanding 21-0 lead.

Hendy left the game with an arm injury and was taken to Hoag Memorial

Hospital for precautionary X-rays. His status is uncertain.

Mesa finally got some offense going on the next drive, traveling 59

yards on eight plays. Most of the yards came courtesy of sophomore

tailback Keola Asuega, who finished with 126 yards on 23 carries.

The drive stalled at the 8-yard line as CdM stopped the Mustangs on

fourth and two.

On its next possession, Mesa had the ball on the Sea Kings’ 7-yard

line, but cornerback Mark Cianculli came up with one of his two

interceptions for the game, ending another Mustangs’ threat.

A low Costa Mesa snap on a fourth-down punting play, gave CdM the ball

on the Mustangs’ 20-yard line on their first possession of the second

half. Four plays later, Hacker stormed into the end zone from a yard out,

putting the game away at 27-0.

“For a kid that’s 175 pounds, you aren’t going to find a runner that

runs harder,” Freeman said. “He’s just goes and goes. he’s tough to bring

down.”

Mesa finally found the end zone near the end of the game as

quarterback Andrew Strickland hit receiver Nick Cabico with a 27-yard

touchdown pass with 42 seconds remaining, erasing the shutout.

Cabico also had 93 yards of special teams yards, but wasn’t enough to

stop CdM.

“The way our league is shaping up, this is anyone league to win,”

Freeman said. “Every win is important and it was nice to get the first

one under our belts.”

With the victory, Corona del Mar now leads the series between the two

schools, 24-7.