PREP FOOTBALL : Sunset League : Edison Deals Westminster a Bitter Defeat : Henderson’s Late Touchdown Pass Leads Chargers Over Lions, 17-13

In the span of 64 seconds Thursday night, the Westminster High School football team experienced both the exhilaration of an apparent come-from-behind victory over Sunset League rival Edison and the bitter frustration of a last-minute defeat.

Charger quarterback Mike Henderson threw a 69-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Dan Hughes with 2:28 remaining to lift Edison to a 17-13 win over the Lions in front of 5,000 in Orange Coast College’s LeBard Stadium.

Just moments before Edison’s winning touchdown, the Lions were celebrating on their sideline following Mike Austin’s 48-yard touchdown pass to Dean Eddy, who eluded the Charger secondary and made an outstanding catch to give Westminster a 13-10 lead with 3:32 left.

But the Lions couldn’t hold on.

Following Westminster’s kickoff, Edison took over on its 25-yard line and, after Henderson’s six-yard run, the quarterback found Hughes open on a post pattern near midfield. Henderson threw a perfect pass, and Hughes, who had drawn single coverage on the play, never broke stride as he made the catch at the Lion 48.

It was a race--Hughes vs. Lion cornerback Brian O’Hara.

Hughes won.

“I’m fast, but I was tired in the fourth quarter,” the senior receiver said. “I looked back to see where he (O’Hara) was, but I knew he wasn’t going to catch me.”

The Lions almost caught the Chargers, though. From their 20-yard line with 2:28 remaining, Westminster drove 52 yards to the Edison 28 with 50 seconds left, as Austin completed three passes to Chris Chiasson and one to Benny Mendoza.

But on first down, Austin was sacked by Vince Legaspi--his third of the game--for a five-yard loss. Austin then passed to Eddy for a six-yard gain, but his next two attempts fell incomplete, and Edison took over with eight seconds remaining.

“Anyone could have won it,” said Edison Coach Dave White, whose team snapped a two-game losing streak. “We showed a lot of character tonight and beat a very good football team.

“The difference between tonight and the last two weeks (losses to Santa Monica and Marina) was that we played Edison football tonight, which means we played with emotion for all four quarters.”

Another difference was Charger sophomore tailback Gus Miranda, who, in his first varsity game, rushed for 87 yards in 20 carries to help Edison improve its record to 1-1 in league and 5-2 overall. Junior Kaleaph Carter, who normally plays tailback, switched to fullback and gained 65 yards in 16 carries.

Westminster (1-1, 3-3-1) took an early 6-0 lead when Austin threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Eddy.