Lightning rumble

NEWPORT COAST — The Sage Hill School football team found itself in a tricky spot Friday.

The Lightning faced Crean Lutheran South on homecoming night but couldn’t afford to look past the winless Saints in anticipation of a huge game Friday against St. Margaret’s that had Academy League championship implications written all over it.

Sage Hill was too prepared to get caught looking ahead and took care of the Saints, 41-0.

The win improved the Lightning to 7-2.

More importantly, it set made them 2-0 in league and, now, they can set their sights on defending league and CIF Southern Section East Valley Division champion St. Margaret’s.

“I thought we played a pretty clean game and it’s a good win for this time of the season,” Sage Hill Coach J.R. Tolver said. “We had some wins earlier in the year where we didn’t play all that well. But to see it come together as good as it did tonight, in the ninth week of our season, is really great to see. Now we can look forward to next week.”

Sage Hill jumped all over the visitors (0-7, 0-2 league), a first-year varsity program that has now been outscored, 340-0, in the first quarter and had the game in command by halftime.

The Lightning put on a show. Junior running back Taylor Ross rushed for three touchdowns, all in the first half. His first came on 15-yard run off a quick pitch from quarterback Randall Mycorn to cap Sage Hill’s first possession. His second, an 18-yard, tackle-breaking run, was set up when Dusty Orrantia recovered a Saints fumble at the Crean 33-yard line midway through the opening quarter. The third, an 11-yarder with 6:17 left in the second quarter, also was set up by a fumble recovery, this one by TJ Danner at the Saints’ 39.

Ross also booted all four extra-point attempts in the half, which ended with the Lightning in command at 28-0.

Sage Hill would run just seven offensive plays in a second half that featured a running clock. Two of those were scores.

On the second offensive play from scrimmage in the half, Eric Cheng streaked 79 yards down the Sage Hill sideline for a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, senior Mo Kreitenberg, who starts at offensive left tackle and is a linebacker/safety, rushed for a seven-yard touchdown.

Sage Hill 41, Crean Lutheran 0

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Sage Hill 0-0-0-0--0

Crean Lutheran 21-7-7-6--41

FIRST QUARTER

SH – Ross 15 run (Ross kick), 8:23.

SH – Ross 18 run (Ross kick), 6:16.

SH – Perry 25 pss from Mycorn (Ross kick), 0:57.

SECOND QUARTER

SH – Ross 11 run (Ross kick), 6:17.

THIRD QUARTER

SH – Cheng 79 run (Ross kick), 9:34.

FOURTH QUARTER

SH – Krietenberg 7 run (kick failed), 9:52.

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING

CLS – Bullock, 6-17; McMillan, 10-5; Kilduff, 1-minus 1; Homan, 5-minus 5.

SH – Cheng, 3-85, 1 TD; Ross, 4-50, 3 TD; Killaly, 2-28; Donchess, 2-14; Orrantia, 3-10; Kreitenberg, 1-7, 1 TD.

INDIVIDUAL PASSING

CLS – Homan, 4-12-0, 35.

SH – Mycorn, 4-7-0, 93, 1 TD.

INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING

CLS – Bullock, 3-29; Tooker, 1-6.

SH – Gaughan, 2-43; Petty, 1-25, 1TD; Orrantia, 1-25.