Game of the Week : St. John Bosco Beats Loyola, 28-27

Bill Friedrich, football coach at St. John Bosco High School of Bellflower, jumped into the arms of an assistant with about a minute left in the game. He helped count off the final seconds by punching his right fist into the air over and over. And once the final gun went off, he rushed the field like a blitzing linebacker.

So, coach, was the Braves’ 28-27 victory over L.A. Loyola Friday night at St. John Bosco a big one?

“It might be our biggest one ever,” he said.

With good reason. Not only will it be a key game in the competitive Del Rey League, and not only was it The Times’ No. 9 team beating No. 8, it also was:

--The defeat of the state’s No. 10 school in the latest 4-A rankings put out by Cal-Hi Sports.

--More points scored on Loyola than the Cubs had allowed in the previous six games combined (26).

True, Loyola’s injury-plagued defense was not at full strength, but St. John Bosco deserves the credit for exploiting it.

Quarterback Jim Sterner completed 11 of 17 passes for 225 yards and three touchdowns, including a 46-yarder to a streaking Kelvin Means with 3:22 left that tied the score. Joe Gludt then won the game for the Braves (7-0) with his extra point. Loyola’s Paul Stonehouse had missed a conversion in the third quarter.

All Means did was catch 9 passes for 201 yards and 2 touchdowns and then halt Loyola’s final drive by knocking George Paton’s pass out off the hands of Loyola receiver Tony Porrata.

“They didn’t break any big runs against us,” said Loyola Coach Steve Grady, whose team is 6-1. “Means was just too tough for us, and the quarterback just laid the ball in. Our defense still played well.”

Oscar Meza, coming off a 127-yard effort last week against La Canada St. Francis, had 123 yards in 14 carries against the Cubs.

Loyola got 114 yards rushing from John Winnek, 172 yards through the air from Paton and two touchdowns from Andres Kennedy, one on a 67-yard reception and another on an 82-yard fumble recovery.