PHOTOS: Boykin propels Orange to league title with 41-21 win over Santa Ana

Orange running back Kobe Boykin celebrates one of his four touchdowns Thursday night. (Photos: Fernando M. Donado).

A big night from sophomore running back Kobe Boykin, a heavy amount of possession time on offense  and an opportunistic defense, catapulted Orange to a 41-21 victory over the Santa Ana to help the Panthers reclaim the Orange Coast League championship Thursday night at Fred Kelly Stadium. 

Boykin accumulated more than 200 all-purpose yards and scored four touchdowns; three rushing and one receiving. Two of those scores were late in the fourth quarter, and killed the possibility of any late heroics from Santa Ana. The Panthers (7-3, 5-0) capitalized on two first half turnovers from the Saints (7-2, 4-1) to take a 20-7 lead into the break.

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Boykin had TD runs of 39, 33 and 48 yards and a touchdown catch of 29 yards.

“My O-line was great,” Boykin said. “I can’t thank them enough. We grind out in practice every day. We worked to beat them. We were in the office for a very long time. Three hours of practice. And we knew it was going to get the job done. And I thank God for my feet and speed because that’s what really helped us to get through big games like this one. We know what they do. So we pounded them down the middle, and when it opens, it opens, and I hit it. This was a great win. I’m very grateful for my line. I hope we can go through a state run.”

“The team overall performed well,” said Orange Coach Robert Pedroza. “Our seniors led us tonight. We put it on our seniors. We have a great group of seniors to win the game for us, and they stepped up.

“Kobe Boykin is so special. He is a great football player, and he showed tonight why he is so good. He was amazing tonight. It was a great team win, and now we got to get ready for the playoffs. It’s great to have (the league) championship, but now we’re ready for playoffs. Our goal is playoffs, not league championships.”

Santa Ana Coach Charlie TeGantvoort said penalities hurt his team.

“That was a game of us getting penalties, and shooting ourselves in the foot as much as possible,” he said. “And you just can’t do that, and expect to win against anybody. If we want to expect to win in the playoffs, we’ve got to make sure we clean up our game because it’s one thing when somebody beats you, but when you  lose it yourself that’s just something we’ve got to look at ourselves and get better and clean it up.

“We played hard all night. That’s the one thing about Santa Ana. We’re going to play hard no matter what. But if we want to win big games we got to play not just hard, but we have to play  clean as well. We are resilient, we’ll bounce back and we’ll get back vs. whoever we play.”

The Orange defense also managed to neutralize the Santa Ana rushing attack by limiting Jason Costa to minimum gains, and forced the Saints offense to become one-dimensional on offense in long-yardage scenarios.

Orange quarterback Zachary Siskowic threw for two touchdown passes, and came up with key rushing yards to extend drives for the Panthers. Jaelen Lightfoot scored on four-yard touchdown run, while junior wide receiver Jonathan Smith Jr. hauled in a two-yard catch for a score.

Lightfoot also recorded an interception in the first half.

“Zach was clutch tonight,” Pedroza said. “Another senior led us, and he did a great job tonight, took care of the ball. The whole team did so well tonight. I’m just proud of them.”

“We prepared all week for it; Santa Ana and Orange, big rivalry,” Siskowic said. “We came in prepared. We knew exactly what they were going to give us. They’re a tough team. You got to give credit to them. But we came in on top. It was a great win.

“We practiced not to force anything. Earlier in the year I was trying to force things, and it wouldn’t go so well. I stayed disciplined and keep our hands in the ball as long as possible. Our next goal is the CIF championship.”

Santa Ana managed to make it a game in the second half, cutting the deficit to six points twice. Santa Ana quarterback Sergio Torres threw for two touchdown passes of 10 and 33 yards, respectively, and scored on a sneak from one yard out in the fourth quarter to cut the Panthers’ lead to 27-21 with close to nine minutes to play in the game. 

Saints seniors Raymond Casillas, and Jesus Olvera each caught a touchdown. 

Olvera also recorded a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter.

The Saints defense felt the absence of linemen Michael Hughes who suffered an injury in his right arm in the previous game against Costa Mesa. Santa Ana’s defensive front came up with big stops late in the game, but late penalties extended drives for Orange.

This was the sixth season in a row that Orange and Santa Ana have competed for the league championship. 

The Panthers avenged last season’s 36-34 loss to the Saints last April 16 during the abbreviated spring season.

—Fernando M. Donado, For OC Sports Zone