PREP FOOTBALL : El Modena Scores 1st Win by Edging Pacifica, 17-16

El Modena High School, so accustomed to winning, returned to form Thursday night as the Vanguards edged Pacifica, 17-16, in a nonleague game in El Modena’s Fred Kelly Stadium.

Pacifica’s attempt at a two-point conversion with 6:59 left failed, giving El Modena (1-2) a win that marked several firsts for the Vanguards:

--It was the Vanguards’ first victory of the season.

--El Modena scored its first points of the season after being shut out by Edison and Esperanza the last two weeks.

--And it was Bill Backstrom’s first win as head coach of the Vanguards.

“I got two off of my back tonight,” Backstrom said. “We got on the scoreboard and we won the game. We needed to get in that end zone bad.”

Backstrom turned to senior Ross Bauer to quarterback the team to victory. Bauer, fighting off an ankle injury, made his first start at quarterback after playing tailback last season.

Bauer’s statistics (4 completions in 15 attempts for 29 yards) weren’t impressive, but he made some big plays and provided the Vanguards with the leadership they had been lacking. .

“Bauer has been through the wars a lot of times for El Modena throughout his career,” Backstrom noted. “We knew he’d be able to settle our offense down.”

Bauer rallied his team from deficits of 7-0 and 10-7.

Pacifica (1-2) opened the scoring when junior tailback Ray Willis ran through the El Modena defense 54 yards for a touchdown early in the first quarter.

El Modena came back with a long touchdown run of its own when senior tailback Mike Lynem scored from 37 yards out to tie the score, 7-7. Lynem was the leading rusher in the game with 122 yards in 22 carries.

Pacifica took its last lead on a 37-yard field goal by Derek Mahoney late in the first quarter.

El Modena tied it just before the half on a 32-yard field goal by Brian Hoey.

Following a scoreless third quarter, El Modena took the lead for good with 7:16 to play in the game when fullback Frank Gentry scored on a two-yard run to make it 17-10.

Pacifica’s Ray Willis returned the ensuing kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown but quarterback Brent Johnson was sacked on a two-point conversion try.