Fullerton starting quarterback Sergio Andrade drops back to pass during the first half against Portola as he gets pass protection from his offensive line during Friday’s Kappa League matchup. (PHOTOS: Fernando M. Donado, For OC Sports Zone).
Fullerton’s football team dominated the second half with five consecutive scores on the way to capturing a critical 47-20 Kappa League victory over Portola Friday night at Portola on Portola’s homecoming.
The Red Hawks (6-2, 3-0) are atop the Kappa League standings with two regular season games and with the victory clinched a CIF playoff berth. Fullerton is looking for its first league title since 2007.
To see the slide show, click on the first photo:
David Salgado (51) prepare for the coin toss.
Portola (5-3, 1-2) appeared to get a lift when Galileo Chen bolted 97 yards on a kickoff return for a TD late in the second quarter to cut Fullerton’s lead to 17-14. But the Red Hawks responded with four consecutive touchdowns and a a safety in the second half to break the game open.
“I’m just proud of our kids, we said we want to play a physical style football and we knew that Portola is really well coached and really disciplined and they would be dialed in for a lot of what we wanted to do,” said Fullerton Coach Peter Karavedas. “We said it was who was going to be about who was more physical up front, that is what we wanted to do, establish ourselves and especially in the second half we felt this is where we can really get going.
“It’s a good win, Portola is a quality program, Coach {Peter} Abe is a heckuva coach and they have a great staff. We’re excited, we talked about having a championship mindset and we talked about that from the beginning. Everyone wants to be a champion but you got to be a champion in the off-season and in the weight room. We’re in the driver’s seat, let’s put it that way.”
Senior quarterback Sergio Andrade led the way completing 9 of 13 passes for 192 yards and two touchdown passes guiding the Red Hawks offense.
“We practiced all week, and it showed out there with how we played and we prepared throughout practice and played great,” said Andrade. “It {the victory} means a lot to us. We worked so hard during this off-seson to get this league title. This victory means we clinched a spot in the playoffs, so that means everything to us.
“We’re just going to focus on next week and keep winning.”
Ethan Edwards was also utilized at quarterback and had two completions for 33 yards and one TD pass and picked up some yards running the ball.
Besides Andrade’s passing, the Red Hawks were dominant on the ground. Cyrus Aviles rushed for 110 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns. Logan Moore had 99 yards rushing on eight carries and Nathan Vejar had 40 yards on six carries.
Isaac Garza had four catches for 110 yards and two TD receptions.
“Our plan, and it’s not a secret, is that we want to run the football and be physical,” Karavedas said. “But we believe you got to be able to throw the football to win the big games and the tough games.”
Fullerton was also tough defensively against Portola.
Bulldogs quarterback Orion Suttle completed 9 of 18 passes for 102 yards. Mason Mapstone was the Bulldogs’ leading rusher with 102 yards on 11 carries. Jamal Abdelkarim had four catches for 57 yards for the Bulldogs.
Fullerton took an early lead on a 23-yard TD run by Moore in the first quarter.
Portola responded when Mapstone scored on a 47-yard TD run later in the quarter to tie the game 7-7.
Fullerton regained the lead when Andrade connected with Garza on a 44-yard TD pass with 14 seconds left in the first quarter to move ahead 14-7.
The Red Hawks extended their lead to 17-7 on a 25-yard field goal by Liam Bengard midway through the second quarter.
But on the ensuing kickoff Chen bolted 97 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead to 17-13. The point after kick was blocked.
Fullerton extended its lead to 24-13 when Andrade connected with Gage Conneton a 31-yard TD pass with 1:22 left in the first half.
In the second half the Red Hawks took over offensively and continued to pressure Portola on defense.
Aviles scored on a pair of 2-yard TD runs, the Red Hawks got a safety when the Portola punter kicked the ball into the end zone following a high snap on fourth down.
Garza hauled in a 29-yard TD catch on a pass from Edwards to cap the scoring.
Portola got the final score of the game when Mapstone scored on a 12-yard TD run.
—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com
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