Kayne Ross of Aliso Niguel scores the first of two touchdowns on a 40-yard TD catch Thursday night (Photos Fernando M. Donado, For OC Sports Zone)
Aliso Niguel quarterback Kyle Kyckelhahn picked apart Santa Ana’s defense throwing five touchdowns to lead the Wolverines to a 48-35 nonleague victory over the Saints Thursday night at Santa Ana Stadium.
To see the slide show, please click on the first photo
Kylckelhahn helped the Wolverines (3-1) jump to a 34-7 halftime lead. Santa Ana (2-2) finished strong against Aliso Niguel’s backups, outscoring the Wolverines 28-7 in the fourth quarter to make the score respectable.
Kyckelhahn wound up completing 17 of 29 passes for 360 yards and one interception for his second best total of the season. He passed for 418 yards against Sunny Hills.
“The victory was good, my O-Line blocked for me and we were able to make plays,” said Kyckelhahn. “The receivers got open, we were able to get a lot of yards and score touchdowns and win. Most of my touchdowns were on scrambles.”
Caleb Peterson also had a big night, hauling in 12 catches for 151 yards for Aliso Niguel.
Aliso Niguel scored three touchdowns in the first quarter. Kyckelhahn hit Peterson on a 3-yard TD pass then connected with Kayne Ross on a 40-yard TD play. The Wolverines capped the quarter with an 88-yard TD pass from Kyckelhahn to Connor McIntosh to make it 20-0.
It was the beginning of a big night for Aliso Niguel.
“We played well,” said Aliso Coach Kurt Westling. “We got a little sloppy in the second half with our subs. Santa Ana played their hearts out the entire game so more power to them.”
Kyckelhahn also scored on a 2-yard TD run in the second quarter and hooked up with Ross on a 58-yard TD pass to make it 34-0.
Santa Ana scored late in the first half on a 31-yard TD run by Daimien Feliz. Feliz also had a 10-yard TD run and a 5-yard TD run in the final quarter.
Santa Ana quarterback Aldo Leyva also connected with Pablo Perez on TD passes for 60 and 43 yards in the final quarter.
Feliz rushed for 206 yards and Leyva passed for 227 yards. But the Saints had trouble on defense and also had two turnovers.
“Aliso has a very good quarterback, he’s hard to stop and he’s an amazing athlete,” said Santa Ana Coach Charlie TeGantvoort. “Even when you do everything else right, he makes plays and he’s definitely one of the under-rated stars of the county.
“We’re a young team and sometimes we do young team things. All we can do is watch the film, learn from it and get better.”
TeGantvoort was pleased his squad battled to the end.
“Our toughness is never the question,” he said. “It’s the exeuction and our knowledge; that’s going to come with time and the more we play and the more we practice, the better we will be.”
In the second half, Aliso Niguel’s Noah Sudyka hauled in a 15-yard TD pass and Charlie Jarvis scampered 67 yards on a touchdown. Ross wound up with two catches for 98 yards.
RELATED: WOLVERINES’ SENIOR QB HAS ANOTHER BIG NIGHT
RELATED: PRE-GAME PICTURES FROM ALISO-SANTA ANA
-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com
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