Newport Harbor football blasts Tesoro for third straight win (2026)

Newport Harbor running back Pepe Tena carries the ball downfield against Tesoro on Friday night.

By Matt Szabo

Staff Writer

Oct. 13, 2026 10:29 AM PT

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LAS FLORES — The Newport Harbor High football team got the ball first in the second half Friday night at Tesoro. From there, it was a clinic in power football.

Eight straight carries from Pepe Tena moved the ball downfield, before Ryder Godbold scored on a 3-yard touchdown run.

They ran behind a line that included senior left tackle Presley Taylor, senior left guard Christian Valadez, sophomore center Louis Choumas, sophomore right guard James Daniel and senior right tackle Christopher Valadez.

(Eric Licas)

“I know the O-line loves to run block,” said Taylor, a team captain, after the game. “I’ve never met an O-lineman that only likes to pass block. Once we get that clicking, our quarterbacks get it clicking, and yeah, we’re just firing on all cylinders.”

That has been the case for the Sailors lately.

Newport Harbor beat Tesoro 44-19, earning its third straight win and staying unbeaten in the Epsilon League. The Sailors are now 5-2 overall and 2-0 in league, tied for first place in the six-team league with Trabuco Hills.

(Eric Licas)

Coach Matt Burns said the Sailors have not won an outright league title since 2004, before any of the current players were born.

“That’s always the goal,” Taylor said. “That’s been the goal since day one, when we stepped in the building. One step at a time. We’re obviously trying to win a league title, but after that, we want CIF. This team is hungry.”

Senior receiver Ryan Palmer caught three touchdown passes Friday night, two from senior quarterback Jordan Spigarelli and another from senior backup Darian Leyva. Burns said that standout senior receiver Shane McKibbin missed the game with a minor Achilles injury, but should be back this week.

(Eric Licas)

Tena also scored on the ground for the Sailors, who responded after Tesoro (1-6, 0-2) went the length of the field on its opening drive, which took more than seven minutes. Sophomore quarterback Jayden Hansen, who was a perfect six for six on the drive, finished it off with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Jack Gaya.

Newport Harbor senior Jackson Stremick took the kickoff back to the Sailors 47-yard line. Spigarelli hit Palmer on a screen pass to the right, and he did the rest, speeding into the end zone for the score.

An illegal contact penalty on Tesoro on a Stremick punt return got the Sailors to the Tesoro 20-yard line early in the second quarter. They were eventually faced with a fourth-and-10, but got the conversion, with Spigarelli finding Palmer on a 20-yard cross over the middle.

Two plays later, Sailors defensive back Wyatt Wilson had a 36-yard interception return for another touchdown, and Newport Harbor was rolling.

“I think it’s just the brotherhood,” Wilson said of the reason for the Sailors’ success this year. “We’re all such good friends. We’re all close, we all grew up in Newport and started in seventh grade just playing seven-on-seven. To come out here with everybody, it’s a brotherhood, it’s a family. That just helps us stay together and keep pushing.”

Burns said the Sailors have good senior leadership, and have been practicing well. That has been a formula for success.

“The guys are focused, and I think that’s kind of the difference maker,” he said. “We dropped down to the Epsilon [League], but I told them you can’t take anyone lightly, because they’re all good football teams. We’ve just got to go play our game, and we’re doing that.”