Orange County Prep Football : Laguna Beach Rolls Over Valley Christian

Laguna Beach Coach Lyman Olney and Valley Christian Coach Mike Wunderley have come to respect each other a great deal.

That respect comes from facing each other from opposite sides of the field during Inland Empire Conference playoffs. Three times Valley Christian and Desert High, Olney’s team before taking over at Laguna Beach this year, met in the playoffs. Twice Olney’s team was victorious.

Friday night, with a new team, in a new town, Olney was again the winner as the Artists (3-1) easily brushed back the Crusaders, 42-7, in front of 900 fans at Guyer Field.

“I didn’t expect it to be so one-sided,” Olney said. “We just got the breaks early.”

Indeed they did. With just over a minute gone in the game, Laguna Beach scored its first touchdown on a 59-yard pass play from quarterback Danny Lane to Derrick Brown.

After a quick interception by Ted Savage, the Artists scored again, this time with less than five minutes gone in the game, on a two-yard run by Mark Wells.

Before the first quarter was gone, Laguna Beach put another seven points on the board, with a seven-yard pass from Lane to tight end Pete Schmitt. Kicker Jason Crabbe, who was six-for-six on the evening, made the extra point.

“We just self-destructed in the first quarter,” Wunderly said. “We’re not in the business of making up a lot of points.”

The 1987 Inland Empire Conference champions had plenty of motivation coming into the game. Last season’s 16-14 loss to Laguna Beach was the Crusaders only blemish on an otherwise perfect record. Wunderley had hoped his team would not only avenge last year’s loss but also get on track for the new season. Valley Christian is now 0-4 in nonconference play.

But the Artists proved to have too much talent. Lane was the one pushing the offensive snowball, completing 15-of-23 passes for 275 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. His final touchdown pass came in the third quarter, teaming with Broc Stephens on a play that covered 68 yards. On the year, senior Lane has completed more than 65 percent of his passes and has thrown for a total of more than 770 yards.

Though Lane spread his passes among six receivers, he still relied on his favorite target, Schmitt. The 6-foot-4 inch, 243-pound, talented tight end caught nine passes for 102 yards.

“He’s a 100% football player,” Olney said about Schmitt, who is also a defensive end. “He’s our only player who always goes both ways.”

In the second quarter, Schmitt sacked the Crusader quarterback Lance Havel, forcing Valley Christian to punt. On Laguna Beach’s ensuing possession, it scored on a 6-yard touchdown run by Shan Gray, giving the winners a 28-0 halftime lead.