Mesa runs away with win

Bryce Alderton

After their performance Friday night, the Costa Mesa High

offensive line should be pretty hungry for breakfast this morning.

This is after they blocked for Costa Mesa High senior tailback Keola

Asuega and his three touchdown runs against host Chaminade Friday

that catapulted the Mustangs to a 27-24 nonleague win over the Eagles

in front of about 1,000 spectators.

Asuega carried 21 times for 279 yards, 263 coming in the second

half, when he scored on runs of 71, 56 and 1 yards.

“I was just trying to do the best that I can do, simply running

the ball,” Asuega said.

This past week, a Costa Mesa coach gave Asuega a magazine article

on Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams. Asuega said he read it

and was inspired.

“I have to give credit to my offensive linemen, Paul Martin, Brett

Via, Luke Sapolu, Andrew Carich and Rodrigo Gutierrez. They were

great tonight. (Today), the linemen have breakfast on me. I call them

my best friends in school.”

Asuega’s runs of 71 and 56 came lightning quick, on the second

play of successive Mesa drives in the fourth quarter. After Chaminade

took a 16-10 lead with 8:58 left, Asuega bolted 71 yards to paydirt

38 seconds later. He then sprinted 56 yards more than two mintutes

later with 5:42 remaining.

But it was the Costa Mesa defense that had to come up big on the

game’s final drive.

After getting the ball on its own 33, Chaminade went 42 yards with

Brian Rhoades completing four passes in the drive. But it was three

incomplete passes, forced by Costa Mesa defenders, that helped the

visitors preserve the win.

Tyler Waldron broke up a Rhoades’ pass on fourth-and-five at the

Mustangs’ 25 with 21 seconds left to seal the win.

Senior cornerback Luis Gonzalez also leaped to bat down two passes

during Chaminade’s final drive.

Senior outside linebacker Nate Hunter swarmed Chaminade ball

carriers all evening, recording nine tackles, and also booted two

field goals, the second a 37-yarder with 1:59 left in the game to

break a 24-24 tie.

“Nate is a great football player, who has gotten himself in

position to play for us this way,” Perkins said.

Costa Mesa (1-1) used the running game virtually all night, with

junior Omar Ruiz rushing 13 times for 67 yards. Asuega also had runs

of 28, 25 and 21 yards.

Mesa opened the scoring when Hunter made a 31-yard field goal with

6:52 left in the third quarter.

Costa Mesa took a 10-3 lead in the third quarter on Asuega’s

1-yard run, that capped a 11-play drive covering 84 yards.

Chaminade pulled even, once again, when Rhoades threw to Adrian

Aye-Darko for a 15-yard score and a 10-10 deadlock.

After Chaminade took a 16-10, Asuega broke 71 yards with 8:51 left

in the game and Hunter’s conversion kick put the visitors ahead,

17-16.

Asuega then expanded the lead with a 56-yard TD run, but Rhoades

connected with Aye-Darko on a 60-yard touchdown 19 seconds later with

5:23 left.

Chaminade tied it at 24-24, when Rhoades hit Aye-Darko on a fade

pattern