Loyola has Edison’s number

Cubs once again ends the Chargers’ bid for a title.The Loyola Cubs seem to have Edison’s number.

The hometown Chargers, seeking their first CIF-Southern Section title in football since 1985, had their bid for Division I supremacy stopped by Loyola on Friday, as the visiting Cubs scored a 26-22 upset win at Huntington Beach High.

The second-round victory puts the Cubs (8-4) into Friday’s semifinal round against Mater Dei.

Edison, which saw its 10-game win streak come to an end, finished the year 10-2.

It was a tale of turnovers for the Chargers, champions of the Sunset League who entered the playoffs as the division’s No. 1 seed for the first time since 1990.

“We turned it over, they didn’t, and that’s the difference in the ballgame,” said Dave White, who concluded his 20th year as head coach of the Chargers. “Loyola played mistake-free football, and on top of it, we had a touchdown called back. They played well and we didn’t.”

Two mistakes -- both interceptions -- led to a pair of Loyola touchdowns.

Edison had taken a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a one-yard touchdown run by quarterback Brian Shrock. Loyola, however, came back with the next 13 points to take a 6-point lead at the half.

The Chargers regained the lead at 14-13 on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Shrock to Thomas Marcin in the third quarter, but when Loyola came up with the second of two interceptions against Shrock, the Cubs turned the miscue into a five-yard run by Russell Oka for a 19-14 lead.

Edison took one final lead when Shrock scored on a five-yard run to cap an 81-yard drive, which gave the Chargers a 22-19 lead with just over eight minutes to play.

That lead was short-lived as Loyola (8-4) needed only four plays to take the lead for good, 26-22, when Taylor Joseph turned a short pass into a 50-yard scoring play.

Shrock threw for 265 yards in his final game as a Charger.

It was the first loss of the season for Shrock, who didn’t play in Edison’s season-opening, 21-13 loss to Kamehameha in Hawaii on Sept. 2.

Edison mounted one final drive, but a fourth-down pass with just under a minute to play was broken up in the end zone.

Edison fell to 0-4 all-time against Loyola, with all four meetings coming in the CIF playoffs, the first of which came in the 1981 postseason.

Three of the four losses to the Cubs have come in second-round action.

Edison, which opened the playoffs on Nov. 18 with a 21-7 win over Redlands, was eliminated in the first round of last year’s playoffs by Loyola.

The Chargers have defeated three of the four teams -- Sunset League rival Esperanza, as well as Mater Dei and Servite, both of whom play in Loyola’s league -- that are still alive in the race for the Division I championship.

“This senior class had a great run,” White said. “They won two league titles in a three-year span, including winning it outright this year. They won 10-straight games and were ranked No. 1 for much of the year. They have plenty to be proud of.”

Final 2004 Prep Football Logs

Edison Chargers (10-2)

(Sunset League champion)

13...at Kamehameha (HI)...21

43...at San Clemente...20

40...at Capo Valley...20

27...Servite...7

24...Mater Dei...21

34...at Esperanza...21

48...at Huntington Beach...0

27...Los Alamitos...19

34...Fountain Valley...0

31...Marina...7

...CIF Playoffs...

21...Redlands...7 22...Loyola...26

Huntington Beach Oilers (5-6)

28...at Los Amigos...35

37...Costa Mesa...14

19...at Laguna Hills...17

75...Century...7

25...Trabuco Hills...35

35...Los Alamitos...45

0...Edison...48

41...Fountain Valley...7

14...Marina...7

20...Esperanza...44

...CIF Playoffs...

7...Long Beach Poly...55

Marina Vikings (0-10)

6...at Los Osos...34

7...at Capistrano Valley....44

17...Newport Harbor...21

0...Mission Viejo...56

0...Paramount...26

0...at Fountain Valley...30

0...Los Alamitos...26

0...Esperanza...63

7...Huntington Beach...14

7...Edison...31

Ocean View Seahawks (2-7-1)

12...Santiago...19

14...Laguna Beach...14

0...at Century...7

0...Santa Ana...28

31...Magnolia...24

14...at Saddleback...21

20...Estancia...12

0...Costa Mesa...24

49...Orange...6

15...Westminster...46Michael Bogard of the Edison High Chargers tackles Loyola’s Chad Peppars as he tries to break through the line of scrimmage in the first half of Friday night’s game at Sheue Field.20051201iqqu9pkn(LA)Michael Bogard of the Edison High Chargers tackles Loyola’s Chad Peppars as he tries to break through the line of scrimmage in the first half of Friday night’s game at Sheue Field.20051201iqqu8vknPHOTOS BY MARK DUSTIN / INDEPENDENT(LA)Edison’s Samson Fuga, left, is the first to get a hand on Loyola quarterback Henry Burge as the Edison defense records a sack in the first half of Friday night’s game at Sheue Field. The loss knocked Edison out of the playoffs.