Sierra Canyon wins battle of trenches and showdown against Orange Lutheran
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It was a matchup of giants on Friday night in Chatsworth, with Sierra Canyon’s Terrific Threesome on the defensive line going against Orange Lutheran’s Fearsome Fivesome on the offensive line. Think Godzilla vs. King Kong.
There was one play in the first half when Kasi Currie and Stephan Harrison looked like a tandem in pro wrestling, sending Orange Lutheran quarterback Ezrah Brown to the ground so hard it drew a 15-yard personal foul.
The game was full of penalties as each team attempted to be more physical than the other. In the end, unbeaten Sierra Canyon, led by running back Jaxsen Stokes, had too much speed and physicality for the Lancers in coming away with a 28-10 win.
The final play of the first half demonstrated the line superiority of Sierra Canyon (4-0). Orange Lutheran had the ball on the one-yard line and tried to score on a quarterback sneak. The Trailblazers pushed back and stuffed the play, ending the half with a 28-3 advantage.
Let’s just say both teams’ fans were not impressed with the number of penalties. Sierra Canyon was called for 14 penalties and 165 yards. Orange Lutheran (3-2) had 10 penalties for 115 yards in the first half and had only one penalty in the second half.
Sierra Canyon had nine 15-yard penalties, many for late hits, roughing the passer or pass interference.
“Coach [Chris] Rizzo, our defensive coordinator, teaches us to be physical throughout the game and dominate the person in front of you,” linebacker Eli Zamorano said. “Next time, we got to learn from our mistakes. We got to be more disciplined. We knew this was going to be one of our tougher games of the season. So we wanted to go out there and show them what SC football is about.”
Stokes’ speed led to touchdown runs of 13 and 74 yards in the first quarter when Sierra Canyon took a 21-0 lead. He finished with 166 yards rushing. The Lancers muffed a punt and made several penalties to keep Sierra Canyon drives alive.
“We had a great first half, physical play, explosive offense,” Sierra Canyon coach Jon Ellinghouse said. “I think we proved the team we can be and then in the second half, we made some sloppy plays.”
There were strange happenings all night. With the clock showing 0:00 at the end of the first quarter, Orange Lutheran got two untimed plays because of consecutive penalties by Sierra Canyon. In the second half, Sierra Canyon made a 21-yard field goal but then got the ball back after a penalty and Ellinghouse pointing out to the officials it was really third down, not fourth down.
“At the end of the day, it was a great win by our team,” Ellinghouse said. “I’m really excited to beat a big, really good football team.”
Two future Texas teammates were on opposite sides, the 315-pound Currie of Sierra Canyon and 305-pound offensive lineman Lucas Rhoa of Orange Lutheran. Sierra Canyon recorded four sacks. Both teams struggled at times to generate consistency with their passing attacks. Chris Flores scored Orange Lutheran’s only touchdown in the third quarter on a five-yard reception. Ryan Christianson rushed for 127 yards.
The only question is how much running Sierra Canyon players will be doing on Monday for their penalty parade.
“I’m not looking forward to that, but I’m looking forward to being with my brothers,” Stokes said.
