Eagles 32 - Bishop Amat 22
LA PUENTE, CA., October 28, 2005 – John Angelo rushed for a career-high 122 yards, Jon Daniels passed for 215 yards and three scores and the Eagle defense came up with enough key plays to lead the visitors to a critical 32-22 win over the Bishop Amat Lancers at Kiefer Stadium. The win ended a disappointing three game losing streak and improved the Eagles to 4-4 overall and 1-2 in Serra League play, while the loss dropped the Lancers to 5-3, 1-2.
The Eagle defense came out of the gate fired up and the hosts struggled to gain positive yardage on their first two possessions. On third-and-14 from the eight, sophomore sensation Logan Harrell dropped Lancer QB Daniel Robles to the turf in the endzone for a safety and a 2-0 lead at the 6:54 mark. Suddenly the Lancer’s offense came to life as they marched 80 and 57 yards for back to back scores at the end of the first quarter and start of the second respectively to take a 14-2 lead. The 80-yard drive was capped by Domonique Gaisie’s two-yard run at the 0:39 mark and Robles hit Christopher Comouche for a seven yard score with 7:42 left in the half.
The Eagles needed just 1:34 to go 65 yards and get back into the game as Daniels (18 of 26) found Ryan Maxwell for 17 yards and Jacob Gordon for 21 two plays later before hitting tight end Ross Cumming from seven yards out at the 6:08 mark to make it 14-9. JD Dawson intercepted a deep Robles pass on the next Lancer possession and the Eagles went on a methodical 12-play 54-yard drive that ended with Eric Reisinger’s 35-yard field goal with only 0:23 left to make it 14-12 going into halftime.
The Eagles went on an 80-yard touchdown drive at the start of the third quarter as Angelo (30 for 122) rushed four times for 38 yards and Daniels hit Nick Pizzurro three times including an 11-yard scoring pass with 9:52 remaining in the quarter to make it 18-14. (The two-point conversion run failed). After forcing a short Lancer punt that was returned by Ryan Maxwell eight yards to the Lancer 36 the Eagles ran the ball nine straight plays as Angelo gained 34 of those yards and scored from the two with 3:19 left in the quarter to increase the lead to 25-14. The Lancers engineered a balanced 80-yard drive of their own and with 0:35 seconds left in the period Robles hit Mark Valenzuela from four yards out to close the gap to 25-22. After an exchange of punts the Eagles went on a 12-play drive that appeared to stall at the Lancer 11. After lining up for a 28-yard field goal the Eagles called timeout and sent the offense back onto the field where Daniels hit a leaping Gordon (five for 59) with an 11-yard scoring strike to make it 32-22 with 3:07 remaining in the game. The hosts didn’t quit as they marched 86 yards to the Eagle five before three straight incompletions and a sack by Brad Dixon and Ross Cumming at the 2:13 mark sealed the Eagle win.
| Santa Margarita | 2 | 10 | 13 | 7 | 32 |
| Bishop Amat | 7 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 22 |
SM – Safety, Robles tackled in end zone by Harrell
BA – Gaisie 2 run (Gener kick)
BA – Comouche 7 pass from Robles (Gener kick)
SM – Cumming 8 pass from Daniels (Reisinger kick)
SM – FG Reisinger 35
SM – Pizzuro 11 pass from Daniels (run failed)
SM – Angelo 1 run (Reisinger kick)
BA – Valenzuela 4 pass from Robles (Comouche pass from Robles)
SM – Gordon 11 pass from Daniels (Reisinger kick)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: SM - Angelo 30-122, Maxwell 1-13; BA - Gaisie 16-61, Cornell 5-20
Passing: SM - Daniels 18-26-1-215; BA - Robles 17-28-2-231
Receiving: SM - Maxwell 5-75, Gordon 5-59; BA - Clark 6-79, Comouche 6-73
By Adrian Peters
Sports Information Director
Santa Margarita uses strong finish
LA PUENTE – Santa Margarita's football team kept its playoff hopes alive with a strong finish Friday night in a 32-22 Serra League victory at Bishop Amat of La Puente.
In improving to 3-0 all-time at Bishop Amat, the Eagles moved to 4-4 overall, 1-2 in the league.
“Without this, we would have been taking our chances (to make the playoffs),” said Santa Margarita coach Mike Jacot, who called it a must-win game.
Santa Margarita scored on its first two possessions of the second half to open a 25-14 lead late in the third period.
After Bishop Amat cut the lead to 25-23, Santa Margarita quarterback Jon Daniels tossed an 11-yard touchdown to Jacob Gordon on a fourth-and-4 with 3:07 left in the fourth quarter.
Santa Margarita capped the victory by stopping Bishop Amat on downs from the Eagles 5 with 2:13 left.
The finish by the Eagles was in striking contrast to their four defeats, all of which have been close late.
"We needed to win this one," said Santa Margarita running back John Angelo, who racked up 108 of his 121 yard in the second half. “It was do or die."
Daniels also was sharp in the second half, completing 10 of 14 passes. Santa Margarita led, 25-22, when faced with the fourth-and-4 at Bishop Amat's 11. A field goal could have made it a six-point lead.
"Our kids convinced me (to go for it)," Jacot said.
Bishop Amat (5-3, 1-2) quickly drove to the Eagles 5. Quarterback Daniel Robles then spiked the ball on first down. Santa Margarita forced two incompletions before Brad Dixon and Ross Cummings combined to drop the quarterback for a 5-yard loss.
Santa Margarita set the tone for the second half by opening with an 80-yard scoring drive that Daniels capped with an 11-yard TD pass to tight end Nick Pizzurro.
Sophomore defensive lineman Logan Harrell put the Eagles on the board first by sacking Robles for a safety with 6:54 left in the first half. Harrell has 9.5 sacks, a sophomore record for Santa Margarita. An interception by Santa Margarita's J.D. Dawson late in the first half led to Eric Reisinger's 35-yard field goal, which cut the halftime deficit to 14-12.
By Dan Albano
Saturday, October 29, 2005
The Orange County Register - Varsity 4
