Orem 51 - Eagles 46
MISSION VIEJO, CA., September 15, 2018 – 46 points. 504 yards of offense and 694 all-purpose yards for the Eagles. On paper you would think that those kind of numbers would equate to an Eagle victory, but not when you are facing an equally high-potent offense. The Eagle defense struggled to put the clamps on the Orem offense which managed to rush for 278 yards and pass for 435 yards, resulting in 51 points, eight of which came from two-point conversions.
Sophomore quarterback Peter Costelli threw for 416 yards on 23 of 38 attempts (61%) with four touchdowns and two interceptions. Junior wide out Chase Nenad had a career night with 11 receptions for 220 yards and three touchdowns. Not to be outdone, senior receiver Jake Ebach had five catches of his own for 132 yards and a touchdown, while proving to be an even bigger threat on special teams with his 154 kickoff return yards, giving him 284 all-purpose yards. Defensively, the Eagles had their hands full. Senior linebacker Martin Hartigan was everyone, finishing the night with 15 total tackles (seven solo, eight assisted). The Eagles had sacks by senior safety Corey Hernandez and junior defensive end Logan Schwenke, with an interception by senior Blake Bianchini.
The Tigers’ offense was as advertised. The USC-commit Puka Nacua displayed why he is heading to the PAC-12 next year. The receiver ended his night with 16 catches for 321 yards and three touchdowns with some of the more impressive catches and explosiveness that the Eagles have seen. Senior quarterback Cooper Legas lived up the bill as a true dual-threat quarterback, passing for 438 yards and rushing for 190 yards of his own.
To their credit, the Eagles scheduled one of the more challenging non-league schedules despite playing in arguably the toughest league in the country. According the MaxPreps, the Eagles played California’s #8 ranked Mission Viejo (#21 in the Nation) and lost by 10 points, 30-20. They lost to Cherry Creek, Colorado’s #1 ranked team and #111 in the country by seven points, 21-14. Most recently losing to Orem, Utah’s #3 ranked team and #101 in the country by five points, 51-46. There is no doubt that the Eagles are one of the best 2-3 teams in California and are battle tested in preparation for the next five weeks and hopefully beyond. This week the Eagles are on their bye before entering the gauntlet known as the Trinity League.
The Eagles open on the road against Orange Lutheran on Friday September 28th at Orange Coast College with kickoff slated for 7:00pm. The Lancers are currently ranked #9 in California and #27 in the nation. A whole new season is upon us, as everyone enters with a league record of 0-0.
| Orem | 14 | 7 | 22 | 8 | 51 |
| Santa Margarita | 14 | 14 | 7 | 11 | 46 |
OR – Viertel 4 pass from Legas (Paulson kick blocked)
SM – Thomas 14 run (Boccuzzi kick)
SM – Nenad 60 pass from Costelli (Boccuzzi kick)
OR – Slade 58 punt return (Legas run)
SM – Ebach 17 pass from Costelli (Boccuzzi kick)
OR – Nacua 80 pass from Legas (Paulson kick)
SM – Nenad 15 pass from Costelli (Boccuzzi kick)
OR – Legas 11 run (Paulson kick failed)
SM – Thomas 8 run (Boccuzzi kick)
OR – Nacua 13 pass from Legas (Slade pass from Legas)
OR – Nacua 40 pass from Legas (Tuisavura pass from Legas)
SM – Boccuzzi 44 FG
SM – Nenad 67 pass from Costelli (Morrison pass from Costelli)
OREM – Tuisavura 1 run (Nacua pass from Legas)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: OR - Legas 16-190, Rockey 9-35; SM - Thomas 17-90
Passing: OR - Legas 24-37-1-438; SM - Costelli 23-38-2-416
Receiving: OR - Nacua 16-321, Rockey 4-91; SM - Nenad 11-220, Ebach 5-32
Sean Zeitler
Sports Information Director
