Huntington Beach rides defense, second-half surge to win over Mayfair
Daunte Bell did not learn until Thursday that he would draw the start at quarterback in the season opener for the Huntington Beach football team.
He admitted to being nervous for the contest — his first with the Oilers — with a thirst to prove himself in his team debut on the road. The first half could have gone better for the Katella transfer, but back-to-back touchdown drives in the third quarter helped make Bell and his new team winners.
After being held scoreless going into halftime, Huntington Beach rallied to defeat host Lakewood Mayfair 20-13 Friday in a nonleague game at Bellflower High.
“I feel like winning [the opener], coming out with a win, I feel like it’s going to make us push harder and come out in league harder, and it gives us a big boost,” Bell said.
Bell, who completed seven of 15 passes for 130 yards and two touchdowns, had just one completion for a yard in the first half. The snaps went to Vaughn Popp (72 passing yards) in the second quarter, and then Bell took the reins again after the break.
Huntington Beach engineered a nine-play, 80-yard drive to start the second half, which Bell capped off with a nine-yard scoring toss to Nicholas Gentilella to tie the score at 6-6 at the 8:06 mark of third quarter.
The Oilers forced a three-and-out possession on defense, allowing their offense to strike again less than five minutes later. Following a sack by Mayfair’s Jake Snow that had set Huntington Beach back into a third-and-17 situation, Bell let the ball fly, and AJ Vandermade came down with it, running it the rest of the way for a 56-yard touchdown and the lead.
“I just had to adapt,” Bell said. “I came out shaky. I was nervous. I’m not going to lie. I was nervous, you know, new football team, new players, my first ever game at Huntington. It’s faster. It’s a harder league.”
Vandermade, who ended the night with 126 receiving yards, made significant contributions on both sides of the ball, punching out the ball for a fumble with Medrick Burnett breaking for the end zone in the first half. Nicholas Loboda made the fumble recovery for the Oilers, one of two on the night, as he also jumped on a loose ball after a botched snap by the Monsoons near the goal line.
It was a busy night for the Huntington Beach defense and their “Turnover Trash Can,” as the Oilers continued to make plays down the stretch. With Mayfair threatening in the red zone again, Musashi Ray picked off Monsoons quarterback Evan Tomich inside the 5-yard line and returned it to the Mayfair 30.
The flipped field position was key, as the Oilers offense stalled out on the first series. Then Nathan Tauanuu delivered the knockout blow, a 31-yard interception return for a touchdown to extend the Huntington Beach advantage to 20-6 with 5:55 to go.
Huntington Beach coach Brett Brown described his team’s defensive performance as “unbelievable.”
“We talked about being relentless, every day and every play, and they were,” Brown said. “They didn’t get down when we were down, and bend but not break, too, tonight. A couple turnovers in the red zone is huge.”
Tauanuu, a linebacker, said he was motivated to play hard, knowing his senior season had begun when he got off the bus for Friday night’s game.
“I was very hungry,” Tauanuu said. “I felt like I had something to prove to a lot of people because a lot of colleges … miss out on a lot, and I want to show them what’s up, so I just had a little chip on my shoulder. I played as hard as I can with my brothers. That’s all that matters.”
Tomich threw for 226 yards and rushed for 79 yards. He connected with his brother, Owen, five times for 118 yards, including a 54-yard strike on the Monsoons’ scoring drive at the end of the first half. Tight end Leroy Palu made a grab at the Huntington Beach 1 on the next play, and Burnett ran it in.
Matt Ward reeled in a 14-yard touchdown from Tomich with 70 seconds left to bring Mayfair within a score.
Nonleague
Huntington Beach 20, Mayfair 13
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Huntington Beach 0 – 0 – 13 – 7 – 20
Mayfair 0 – 6 – 0 – 7 – 13
FIRST QUARTER
None.
SECOND QUARTER
M – Burnett (kick blocked), 0:24.
THIRD QUARTER
HB – Gentilella 9 pass from Bell (Bell pass failed), 8:06.
HB – Vandermade 56 pass from Bell (Othman kick), 3:34.
FOURTH QUARTER
HB – N. Tauanuu 31 interception return (Othman kick), 5:55.
M – Ward 14 pass from E. Tomich (kick), 1:09.
INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
HB – Geracitano, 18-51.
M – E. Tomich, 10-79.
INDIVIDUAL PASSING
HB – Bell, 7-15-1, 130, 2 TDs; Popp, 6-8-1, 72.
M – E. Tomich, 13-23-2, 226, 1 TD.
INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING
HB – Vandermade, 4-126, 1 TD.
M – O. Tomich, 5-118.
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