Eagles fumble it away

LAGUNA BEACH — Estancia High senior Matt Redding caught the jump ball near midfield, sprinting back across the field toward the visitors’ sideline.

Every step he took on the 85-yard reception from Mike Morley gave the Eagles more and more hope, and he was tackled at the Laguna Beach seven-yard line with 20 seconds left in the game.

But then turnovers reared their ugly head again, with Estancia fumbling away the ball on the next play and ultimately the game, 21-14, in a battle for first place in the Orange Coast League.

The Eagles (6-3, 1-1 in league) committed four turnovers in the game, while Laguna Beach (4-5, 2-0) had just one. That helped negate Estancia’s sizable lead in total yardage, 375-229.

There was no long talk or time spent in deep thought after the game. The Eagles, many of whom appeared stunned, quickly packed up their equipment, got on the bus and headed back to Costa Mesa.

“We had a lot of turnovers tonight,” Estancia Coach Brian Barnes said. The team that turns the ball over least wins the game, and [Laguna Beach] did that tonight. They’re a solid team. They’re not real big, but they play hard and they play assignment football. They did well.”

Estancia fought from behind all night, mainly thanks to the efforts of Redding and senior running back Rafael Alejandre. Redding caught five passes for 193 yards, while Alejandre rushed 35 times for 122 yards.

Laguna Beach was much more unpredictable offensively. Behind junior quarterback Charley Bowman, the Breakers moved 70 yards on their first drive, capped when Devin Hands pounded it in from a yard out with 5:48 left in the first quarter.

Bowman carried the ball eight times on the drive. But on the game, the Breakers’ leading rusher managed just 38 yards on 16 carries.

“Our defense played really well again,” Barnes said. “Besides a couple of trick plays, we did a good job.”

But midway through the second quarter, the Breakers took advantage of an 18-yard Estancia punt. Starting at the Estancia 41, their six-play drive ended when Bowman found Max Hilburn over the middle for a 20-yard touchdown pass.

Estancia battled back, using a 33-yard completion to Redding to set up a one-yard quarterback sneak by Morley on fourth-and-goal with 46 seconds left before halftime.

The extra point was blocked, leaving the Breakers’ lead at 14-6.

Both teams struggled offensively in the third quarter, and the score stayed that way until the fourth. With 10:28 left in the game, Edgar Vargas’ diving interception gave Estancia the ball at its own two-yard line.

But the Eagles gave it back when Laguna Beach’s Bob Monroe tipped a pass near the line of scrimmage and ultimately grabbed it at the Estancia 26.

That set up Bowman’s nine-yard touchdown scamper on a draw play, upping the Laguna Beach lead to 21-6 with 3:58 left. But the Eagles would prove they were still alive, nearly coming all the way back.

“Our kids played hard; I learned a lot from our kids and our program,” Barnes said. “We’re turning the corner. Most teams getting down 21-6 would have given up, but our kids fought back and made it a game.”

A double-pass went from Mike Morley to his older brother Tim Morley to Redding, and it was good for 41 yards to the Laguna Beach 18. Three plays later, Mike Morley dove into the end zone, then scored on a two-point conversion run to bring Estancia back within a touchdown, at 21-14.

After a failed onside kick, the Eagles held Laguna Beach to a three-and-out, giving the ball back to Estancia on its own seven-yard line with 1:11 left in the game.

After a botched trick play that almost resulted in a fumble in the end zone, it didn’t look good for the Eagles.

But, on third-and-nine, Mike Morley found Redding, who jumped to take the ball away from the Breakers’ Alex Smith, then sprinted nearly into the end zone with 20 seconds left.

“I am so proud of him,” Barnes said. “I can’t speak highly enough of Matt. He tried to single-handedly win this game here at the end, and he fought and fought and fought. He came close, he just didn’t quite get in.”

The Eagles still have a chance for a co-league championship with a win over Calvary Chapel next week and a Costa Mesa win over Laguna Beach.

“It’s a tough loss, but next week we’ll definitely be fighting again,” Barnes said. “You never know what’s going to happen.”