Monday Morning Quarterback:

For Corona del Mar High (2-4), last week’s 21-6 loss to Villa Park laid bare some issues that must be corrected for the Sea Kings to be competitive when Pacific Coast League play begins against Beckman this week.

The Spartans’ victory — Villa Park was winless this season before Friday, and lost all but one game last season in Century League play — marked the third time this season that CdM has scored only once during a contest.

The Sea Kings’ running game has been hot and cold, and while JD Abbott, Tyler Harmon, and Austin Raiger did well against South El Monte, the trio was limited to just 45 yards rushing against the Spartans. Quarterback Hunter Alder was 10-16 for 73 yars, and three interceptions killed him.

The Sea Kings played their best defensive half of the season Friday, allowing just 45 yards and leaving the field at halftime leading 6-0. But penalties and a larger defensive line stifled CdM’s second half offense.

“We did a real good job against them in the first half,” Freeman said. “We didn’t play bad the whole game. That was probably the best defensive effort we had.”

After the Sea Kings win over South El Monte, linebacker Noah Molnar said the win was important because it marked a turnaround in the season for CdM, which had a three-game losing streak entering the contest.

“We were disappointed after the Villa Park loss because we thought we would win, especially after the first half that we had,” Abbott said.

The defensive fronts CdM will face in league should be smaller, he said.

“We knew we could compete against them,” Freeman said. “They’re a pretty good defensive team. We knew they played some good teams.”

With a number of players on the sidelines padless and in jeans because of various injuries, it was going to take a player like Newport Harbor’s Danny Miller to keep the Sailors in the game against Mira Costa.

That’s because Miller had mastered his mental repetitions, according to Coach Jeff Brinkley.

“You never know when you’re number’s going to be called,” Brinkley said, recalling Saturday’s UCLA-Notre Dame game.

Bruins’ starting quarterback Ben Olson left the game with a knee injury late in the first quarter and freshman redshirt McLeod Bethel-Thompson, who’d never played a college game, was pressured into mistakes the rest of the game.

“If you’re not getting the physical [repetitions] at practice, you should doing mental [repetitions],” Brinkley said. “That means when you’re standing there, you should be observing your position and what’s being called, what adjustments are being made.

So there was no dear-in-headlights moment for Miller, and his observations paid off. Miller had 25 carries for 229 yards and one touchdown.

Brinkley is still waiting this week to see how starter Ben Frazier (torn medial collateral ligament) and backup Michael Helfrich (shoulder) feel for Friday’s league opener against Fountain Valley. Woody Yokoyama is expected to return after sustaining a slight concussion in practice last week, and Cecil Whiteside (bruised bicep) is still questionable at this point, as well. Jason Jacobi should also be returning from a concussion in last week’s game had sustained against Dana Hills.

Newport Harbor might be rolling along in spite of its injuries, but Estancia is still reeling from the loss of senior starting quarterback Mike Morley.

“Number one, it’s a big loss for us because he’s our team captain, he’s our leader,” said Estancia Coach Mike Bargas. “On the other hand, it means the other players have to rise to the occasion.”

A trip to the doctor revealed that Morley injured his right elbow, his throwing elbow, while trying to make a tackle on defense against Ocean View, and that Morley may have to have potentially season-ending surgery.

“We’ve lost him for a few weeks and it may be even longer than that,” Bargas said. “We’re not sure. He’s got a bit of swelling in his arm.”

That means Bargas’ plan has shifted, and now backup Radames Gutierrez will be getting most of the practice repetitions, and his role on defense will be reduced. Michael Arciga will take over Gutierrez’s role in the secondary.

“It doesn’t mean we’re going to go backward,” Bargas said. “It just means we’re going to lessen the package a little. I don’t see us making any drastic changes.”

Bargas plans to get rid of the bye week when he can change the schedule because it makes players complacent, he said. But now, he’s a little grateful that Gutierrez will have an extra week to study the playbook before league play starts Oct. 26. against Calvary Chapel. Alek Kirshner, a defensive starter who also plays backup quarterback, is still questionable for this week with an anterior cruciate ligament strain.

“I hope to God that Mike’s going to be OK, and we can have him ready for Calvary, but I’m looking at Radames and we’re going to try to get him ready just in case Mike isn’t there,” Bargas said. “For us, two guys being banged up is a lot since we don’t have a lot of depth.”

Friday marked the first time Costa Mesa had reached a double-digit score this season, but the Mustangs still lost, 28-18, to Katella. Saturday’s game against Rim of the World marks the last game before Orange Coast League play starts at Laguna Beach.

There’s a decent chance the Mustangs could start league play winless. Rim of the World (4-1) was undefeated in the regular season last year.

“We have a big playbook,” said Coach Jeremy Osso. “We’re finally starting to get a hold of the base plays. They did a good job of executing our base run plays and our base pass, which allows us to add more things to our playbook.”

Jason Schroeder left the Katella game with a strained ligament, and Josh Erno checked out with a bruised thigh. Osso expects to know about their status later today. Starting running back Antwon Byrd was hampered by walking pneumonia, in addition to his hip flexor, and center Max Cedarquist has been out because he was complaining of headaches and dizziness. Osso said Cedarquist did not have a concussion.

Sage Hill managed to right itself Friday with a 38-18 win over Animo, after breaking a four-game win streak with a loss to Bakersfield Christian.

The Lightning have a bye, followed by a game at Linfield Oct. 19 before opening Academy League play against St. Margaret’s, the reigning CIF Southern Section Northeast Division champions.

SORAYA NADIA McDONALD may be reached at (714) 966-4613 or at [email protected].