PREP FOOTBALL : Angelus League : Bieniemy Leads Bishop Amat Past Servite

As Bishop Amat High School running back Eric Bieniemy broke loose for his fourth touchdown Thursday night against Servite, this one 71 yards, quarterback J. R. Phillips could no longer contain himself. He dropped to his knees, then fell facemask first into Costa Mesa’s LeBard Stadium sod, flapping his feet and hands.

And Bieniemy deserved every fall, earned every flap.

He rushed for 304 yards in 21 carries and scored 5 touchdowns as he led Bishop Amat to a 49-27 Angelus League victory over Servite. Though it was the league opener for both teams, many had pegged this as the league championship.

Bishop Amat (1-0, 6-0) entered the game rated third in the state by Cal-Hi sports magazine. Servite’s (0-1, 4-2) only loss was to Edison. But Mark Paredes, Bishop Amat coach, played down the game’s significance.

“This was a big win for us, but it wasn’t for the Angelus League championship,” he said. “Contrary to popular belief, we’ve got four more games left.”

But if Bieniemy runs like he did Thursday, those games could be mere formalities. The 5-foot 10-inch, 185-pound Bieniemy scored on runs of 84, 68, 6, 71 and a 9-yard pass from Phillips.

All of which tends to cloud the fact that this was one of the best games of the high school season. Bishop Amat had to score 28 points in the fourth quarter to win. That the Lancers did it so quickly and so convincingly belied the game.

Servite broke to an early 14-0 lead on a two-yard Derek Brown run and a 39-yard pass from Servite quarterback Jason Messersmith to Nick-John Haiduc.

Bishop Amat, which gained a total of 8 yards on 6 plays in the first quarter, came back when Phillips completed his only pass--a 43-yard touchdown to Scott Ragano.

Servite’s Pat Blottiaux added a 37-yard field goal to make it 17-7 at the half.

At the half, Bieniemy was less than spectacular, rushing for 53 yards, 39 on one carry.

Then came the second half. On his second carry of that half Bieniemy broke down the left sidelines for 84 yards. A carnival of scores followed.

Haiduc, who had 6 receptions for 129 yards, caught his second touchdown, this one for 29 yards to put Servite ahead, 24-14.

Bieniemy then broke for 78 yards and a touchdown. But that was called back on a motion call. No problem. Three plays later, Bieniemy went 68 yards for a score. Bishop Amat trailed, 24-21.

Blottiaux’s 27-yard field goal would be Servite’s last score, putting the Friars ahead, 27-21.

Bieniemy scored on a measly (for him) six-yard run. Then on a 71-yard run. And just to add balance, Mazio Royster scored on a 61-yard run.

Bieniemy closed the night’s scoring with, of all things, a nine-yard touchdown reception.

“When we came out in the second half, we were serious,” Bieniemy said. “The guys opened the holes for me.”