Servite - Game Notes
This is the fifth meeting between Santa Margarita and the Servite Friars, but the first meeting between the two schools as league rivals. In the 1997 CIF Playoffs, the Eagles beat Servite 59-18 at Cal State Fullerton. The Eagles needed only three plays to score on the strength of a 32-yard Td strike from Carson Palmer to Greg Orlando. Orlando, who blocked two PATs, finished with four receptions for 107 yards and 2 Tds. Garrett Thompson logged 57- and 63-yard kickoff returns, Palmer completed 10 of 16 passes for 222 yards and three TDs, and LB Nick Cappelletti added a career-high 18 tackles. In Week 3 of 1997, Bryant Wolfsberger rushed for 171 of the school's then school record 415 yards rushing as the Eagles posted a convincing 55-14 win at CSF. The Eagles scored on their first two offensive plays, five of their first 11 and seven of their first 18 plays to build a 48-7 halftime lead. The Eagles finished with 551 yards on only 38 plays (14.5 yards per play) and tied then school records with 55 points and eight Tds. Nick Cappelletti led the team with 11 tackles and a sack. In 1996, the Eagles fell to the Friars 38-27 before a standing room only crowd of 8,000 at Saddleback College. At OCC in 1991, Tim Sulick and Joe Winkleman stopped Friar RB Michael Lund on a 2-Point play to with 2:58 left to preserve an emotional upset victory.
Despite the loss to Mater Dei, the Eagles are 17-7 (.708) all-time vs. Division I teams.
QUICK FACTS
This is Santa Margarita's 134th varsity game, and 69th
home game. The Eagles have an all-time record of 100-32-1
(.756) as they enter Week 10 of their 11th varsity season.
The Eagles are 9-1 in Week 10 games.
The Eagles' all-time home record is 54-13-1 (.801), and they are 50-10-1 (.828) at Saddleback College.
Santa Margarita is ranked 9th in this week's CIF-SS Division I poll.
COACHES
Eagle Head Coach Jim Hartigan is 100-32-1 (.756) in his
11th season as varsity Head Coach. Overall Coach Hartigan
has a 116-35-2 (.765) record if you include 10-0 and 6-3-1
lower level teams that he led in 1987 and 1988 respectively
before the Eagles fielded varsity teams. He was honored
as the both the 1996 and 1997 Daily Pilot Sea View League
Coach of the Year, CIF-SS Division V Coach of the Year and
the National Football Foundation Orange County Coach of
the Year. The Friars are led by 11th-year coach Larry Toner
who is 73-53-1 (.579) at Servite (.839).
By Adrian Peters
Sports Information Director
