SAN CLEMENTE 37 - EAGLES 14
SAN CLEMENTE, CA., October 2, 1998 – The Eagles (3-1) suffered their first loss in 29 outings as they allowed 446 total yards of offense to Division I San Clemente (2-2) and fell 37-14. It was the Eagles worst defeat on four years. The Eagles never got on track offensively and failed to contain the Tritons "Fly" offense as Chris McCormick rushed for 208 yards and scored four touchdowns. After a scoreless first quarter San Clemente scored 17 points with the aid of a fumbled kickoff and a 35-yard field goad as time expired. The Eagles had limited the Tritons to 125 yards to that point, but were hurt by six penalties and poor field position. In the third quarter, the Tritons opened the lead to 30-0 before Tyler Thompson scored on a 24-yards run. Later, Greg Orlando found Mike O’Gorman for a 20-yard score. Offensively, Orlando rushed for a career-high 93 yards and completed 11 of 19 passes for 138 yards. Defensively, Josh Wills led the team with a career-high 18 tackles.
| San Clemente | 0 | 17 | 20 | 0 | 37 |
| Santa Margarita | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
SC – McCormack 34 pass from Coviello (Hollis kick)
SC – Allen 1 run (Hollis kick)
SC – FG Hollis 35
SC – McCormack 48 run (kick blocked)
SC – McCormack 40 run (Hollis kick)
SM – Thompson 24 run (Froehlich kick)
SC – McCormack 53 run (Hollis kick)
SM – O'Gorman 20 pass from Orlando (Froehlich kick)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: SC - McCormack 14-208, Allen 21-104; SM - Orlando 9-93, McCroskey 9-43
Passing: SC - Coviello 2-4-0-44; SM - Orlando 11-19-0-138
Receiving: SC - McCormack 2-44; SM - O'Gorman 4-77, Lopez 4-26
By Adrian Peters
Sports Information Director
Santa Margarita's streak ends at 28
SAN CLEMENTE – Thalassa Stadium has been a House of Horrors for Orange County teams sporting long winning streaks.
Four years ago, Mater Dei rolled into San Clemente winners of 27 in a row, and left on the losing end of a 23-21 score.
Santa Margarita, holding the second-best winning streak in the county's history at 28, saw its string of victories come to an end at the hands of the Tritons on Friday, losing 37-14.
The Eagles (3-1), ranked No. 1 in Division VI, No. 2 in the state in Division II, and No. 4 in the county, last lost in Week 3 of the 1996 season to Servite, 38-27.
The Tritons (2-2) dominated from the start, taking a commanding 30-0 lead before Santa Margarita knew what hit them.
San Clemente senior Chris McCormack did most of the damage as he set career highs with 208 yards and four touchdowns.
"We played Triton football tonight," the 5-11, 175-pound wide receiver said. "(Santa Margarita) knew what was coming, but they just couldn't stop us. "
Tritons coach Mark McElroy felt his team would have a chance at pulling off the upset if they could stay close to the Eagles in the fourth quarter. It was never close.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I think we would win like this," McElroy said. "We told our kids not to listen to the naysayers, stay focused and snap the streak.
"Tonight was magical. "
San Clemente's victory was anchored by a running game that gained a season-high 417 yards on the ground, and a defense that has allowed only three touchdowns in its past 10 quarters.
But the Tritons first score came via the pass as sophomore Dan Coviello hit a wide open McCormack for a 32-yard strike in the second quarter.
James Allen, who rushed for more than 100 yards for the second consecutive week (109), then added a 1-yard run on San Clemente's next possession before Tim Hollis booted a 35-yard field goal on the first half's final play.
The Tritons, winners of two in a row, dominated the second quarter as they had possession for more than nine minutes, limiting the Eagles to only six plays and one first down.
"San Clemente did a great job of executing and we did a poor job of stopping them," Santa Margarita coach Jim Hartigan said.
By Mark Garcia
Saturday, October 3, 1998
The Orange County Register - D13
