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Huntley’s recap: The highs, lows and final word on football’s Week 8

October 16, 2023

Taking a look at the highs and lows for Orange County’s teams and players in Week 8 of the football season.

THE HIGHS

Steve Chavez, Orange Lutheran: Chavez ran for 123 yards with three rushing touchdowns in Orange Lutheran’s 36-33 win against Servite.

Anthony Fabian, Marina: Fabian had 185 rushing yards with two touchdowns in Marina’s 28-21 win over Garden Grove.

Ryan Gass, Santa Margarita: The junior made the game-winning field goal for Santa Margarita with one second remaining to beat JSerra.

Max Gonzales, San Clemente: Gonzales returned an interception for a touchdown and made two field goals to give San Clemente its first win at Mission Viejo since 1998.

Bode Jellerson, Foothill: The senior All-County lacrosse player intercepted a pass in the final minute for Foothill in an upset win over previously undefeated Villa Park.

Max Krosky, Capistrano Valley Christian: Krosky had 120 yards receiving with three touchdowns for the Eagles in a 51-8 win against Riverside Prep. The junior also had an interception on defense.

Ardwon Morris, Orange: The Sacramento State commit ran for 409 yards with seven touchdowns for Orange in a dominant win over Estancia.

Trevor Newkirk, San Juan Hills: The 6-foot-7 offensive lineman had three pancake blocks in a rout of El Toro. His teammate Cooper Javorsky also had three pancake blocks.

Cash O’Byrne, Tesoro: The junior quarterback completed 70 percent of his passes for 318 yards with three touchdowns to help Tesoro give Capistrano Valley its first loss of the season.

Tesoro quarterback Cash O’Byrne throw a pass up field during the game against Capistrano Valley in football action Friday October 13, 2013 in Rancho Santa Margarita.(Photo by Greg Andersen, Contributing Photographer)

Jacob Perry, Trabuco Hills: The lefty quarterback completed 17 of 19 passes for 244 yards with three touchdowns for the Mustangs in a 58-24 win over Aliso Niguel.

Owen Walz, Dana Hills: Walz returned a kickoff for a touchdown to help Dana Hills end Laguna Hills’ county-long 15-game winning streak. The San Clemente transfer also had 90 yards receiving with a touchdown.

THE LOWS

Mater Dei offense: The Monarchs were held to just 182 yards of total offense and were shut out in a 28-0 loss to St. John Bosco. It was the first time Mater Dei had been shutout since 2011. Mater Dei is still the best team in Orange County and will likely get another shot at Bosco for the CIF-SS Division 1 championship, but the Monarchs have to be better on offense than they were on Friday.

Undefeated teams: Laguna Hills, Mater Dei, Capistrano Valley and Villa Park all had their undefeated seasons end in Week 8. It is difficult to go undefeated and a loss doesn’t mean that these teams will not have postseason success, but two of these teams squandered late chances to win the game. Villa Park turned the ball over in the final minute against Foothill and Laguna Hills had a late turnover on downs against Dana Hills.

HUNTLEY’S FINAL WORD ON WEEK 8

If you want to watch the most competitive games in Orange County, catch a Garden Grove League game. The Garden Grove League doesn’t feature the best teams in the county but every game seems to come down to the final minutes.

Alex Tran scored a touchdown in the second overtime for La Quinta in a 42-36 win over Santiago. Rancho Alamitos overcame a 12-point deficit to beat Bolsa Grande in a 21-18 thriller.

Five of the six teams can beat each other on any given day and the league’s fifth-place team, Santiago, has back-to-back one score losses. I have no idea how these teams will do in the playoffs, but we need to give the Garden Grove League more credit for consistently giving us thrilling games.

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