HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL GAME OF THE WEEK

Mike Sciacca

This weekend marks the midway point of the 2000 Sunset League season,

with several teams chasing playoff berths and a possible league

championship.

Fountain Valley and Los Alamitos are two such teams. Both have playoff

aspirations and both are still in the hunt for a league title.

Their common goals make for an intriguing matchup in the Independent’s

Game of the Week as the Griffins and Barons square off at 7 p.m. Friday

at Orange Coast College’s LeBard Stadium.

Hopes are high for both teams, but the loser of Friday’s clash will

find itself with two league losses and fading optimism for a Sunset

championship.

Each week, it seems, Los Alamitos is involved in the league’s most

pivotal matchups. This week is no exception.

The Griffins, however, find themselves in an unfamiliar position:

they’re coming off a loss, a 29-14 setback to Edison.

“I suspect they’ll be mad and ready to make up for that loss,”

Fountain Valley Coach Eric Johnson said. “They are an awfully good team

and they can beat you in a lot of ways.”

Fountain Valley (4-3, 1-1) could win this game with defense; that is,

if the Barons play like they did in limiting explosive L.A. Carson to

just 14 points, shutting out Trabuco Hills, and, most recently, yielding

a single touchdown to Huntington Beach.

The Griffins (6-1, 1-1) had averaged 27 points per contest prior to

posting just 14 last week against Edison, including a big goose egg in

the second half.

What’s more, Los Alamitos quarterback Mike Catalano threw three

interceptions in that game; he had been picked off just twice in his

first six. Still, Catalano had 350 passing yards against Edison, giving

him 1,346 on the season.

Johnson knows that another solid defensive performance by his troops

is crucial to the Barons’ hopes of knocking off the Griffins for the

second straight year.

“We’ve just got to have a performance like the one we gave against

Carson,” he said. “I think that if we can hold them to 14 or 21 points, we have a great shot at winning this game.

“We’ve got to hold them down, and our offense needs to be able to move

the ball and not turn it over. If we can do that, then I really like our

chances.”

The Barons gave up 41 points in a league-opening loss to Esperanza, a

game in which Aztec running back Temitope Sonuyi ran wild in the second

half to erase Fountain Valley’s 12-0 halftime lead.

While Los Alamitos’ ground attack doesn’t figure to have the potency

of Esperanza’s, the Griffins do possess a speedy back in Adam Nauta. His

performance could be a deciding factor in Friday’s game.

On its way to victory last week, Edison’s defense shut down the run,

holding Nauta to a season-low 39 yards on 16 carries.

“We need to be working on all cylinders for this one,” Johnson said.

“This is a big game for both teams.”