CdM ekes out win

NEWPORT BEACH — By the time the football players went to their lockers at Corona del Mar High Friday morning, a sheet of paper was waiting for them to read.

Coach Jason Hitchens made sure to post one on every locker.

The words came in an e-mail Hitchens received from a parent about a T-shirt an Irvine fan wore the day before the Sea Kings played the Vaqueros.

J.D. Abbott saw it and it fired him up.

“The only thing from preventing a Vaqueros victory is the forest fires,” said Abbott, remembering the words as if they belonged to a famous author.

Abbott can change the quote now because the only thing preventing Irvine from winning at Newport Harbor Friday night was CdM.

The Sea Kings brushed aside Irvine in a Pacific Coast League game to win, 14-13, and put out the Vaqueros’ six-game winning streak.

In order to spark CdM (6-2, 1-1 in league), ranked No. 7 in the CIF Southern Section Southern Division poll, to its first league victory, Hitchens used the e-mail as a motivational tool.

“It was actually pretty clever,” said Hitchens of the T-shirt he said had a picture of “Smokey the Bear.”

A fire came between CdM playing Irvine last season.

A coin flip decided the playoff fate for these two football teams with 1-2 records in league.

It wasn’t earned on the field. Rather it was heads or tails.

The coin landed in favor of the Vaqueros and they went to the postseason.

The Sea Kings went home.

A month later the school lost their coach of 12-plus seasons in Dick Freeman after CdM missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003.

Hitchens has the Sea Kings back on track to return to the playoffs after beating the No. 4-ranked Vaqueros (6-2, 1-1).

This game was huge after CdM opened league play with a 34-7 drubbing at defending league co-champion Laguna Hills last week.

It meant so much that Coach Terry Henigan wanted his Vaqueros to win the game, rather than tie it with 7 minutes, 44 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

In a defensive battle, there weren’t many opportunities. There’s no overtime in this league.

“About three seconds,” Henigan said of how long it took him to decide to go for two points after quarterback Allen Merritt hit tight end Pierce Lang on a 15-yard touchdown pass. “If we didn’t want to win, I wouldn’t have gone for two.”

Irvine trailed, 14-13, before electing to go for a two-point conversion.

The call started off looking good. Tight end Matt McNabb lined up and faked like he was going to block before sneaking to the left.

No defender was nearby, but the sophomore lost his footing by the time Merritt threw his way in the end zone.

The ball hit the ground shortly after McNabb did. The move to go for two points didn’t surprise Hitchens.

“I told him after the game I thought it was a gutsy call on his part,” Hitchens said. “Fortunately [for us], the kid fell down.”

The Sea Kings made sure to drop whoever touched the ball on the last two possessions for Irvine.

The Vaqueros had two opportunities in the final 6:44. The golden one was the one in which they started on the Sea Kings’ 33.

But as the Sea Kings did for most of the night, giving up only 13 yards on 25 carries, they stuffed Irvine.

Linebackers Max Haase and Alex Swigert took down running back Tra’shon Young for a three-yard loss on the first play. On the next one, linebacker Tyler Haly sacked Merritt for a seven-yard loss.

All of a sudden Irvine was out of field-goal range.

The Vaqueros punted, hoping to get the ball back with their defense.

Corona del Mar gave it back, not after John Christian recorded a booming 65-yard punt, pinning Irvine on its own eight with 91 seconds remaining.

Irvine wasn’t going anywhere.

The defense chased Merritt out of bounds for a four-yard loss on first down.

The next run the Vaqueros finally ran out of time as Swigert recovered a fumble on the three to end the game.

“Our defense just wanted it,” said Abbott, whose three-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Mitch Sands late in the third quarter proved to be the game-winner. “Last year, they didn’t let us play the game.

“Now, we’re controlling our own destiny for the playoffs.”

CORONA DEL MAR 14, IRVINE 13

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Irvine 0-0-7-6-14

CdM 7-0-7-0-14

FIRST QUARTER

CdM – Haase 9 pass from Sands (Boehm kick), 2:51.

SECOND QUARTER

Irv – Whippo 10 run (Santana kick), 6:08.

CdM – Abbott 3 pass from Sands (Boehm kick), 1:15.

FOURTH QUARTER

Irv – Pierce 15 pass from Merritt (pass failed), 7:44.

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING

Irv – Whippo, 3-18, 1 TD; Young, 10-14; Day, 4-4; Ernst, 1-2; Nguyen, 1-2; Reihanifam, 1-1; Merritt, 5-minus 28.

CdM – Abbott, 16-71; Swigert, 9-32; Sands, 10-28; Norton, 1-4; Noe, 1-0; team, 3-minus 3.

INDIVIDUAL PASSING

Irv – Merritt, 11-19-1, 150, 1 TD.

CdM – Sands, 15-27-0, 149, 2 TDs.

INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING

Irv – Pierce, 4-57, 1 TD; Ernst, 2-49; Reihanifam, 1-19; Day, 3-13; Andrade, 1-12.

CdM – Molnar, 5-61; Haase, 3-50, 1 TD; Swigert, 3-21; Norton, 3-14; Abbott, 1-3, 1 TD.

DAVID CARRILLO PEÑALOZA may be reached at (714) 966-4612 or at david.carrillo@latimes.com.