Three Saints Run, Run, Run as Santa Ana Blanks Newport Harbor, 28-0

Life seems to just get tougher, doesn’t it? Remember how, for the past three years, you’d go to a Santa Ana High School football game and all you had to do was watch Robert Lee and you saw the Santa Ana offense. He ran for big yards, he scored, he carried the team to a couple of Southern Conference finals.

Well, Lee has graduated. So now, you’re in danger of minor neck and eye injuries trying to keep track of who is running, when and where.

Thursday night, Julius Fletcher, Estrus Crayton and Garner Hicks, ran over, past and through Newport Harbor to lead Santa Ana to a 28-0 victory in front of 2,000 at Santa Ana Stadium.

“We intended to have more diversity this season,” said Dick Hill, Santa Ana coach.

Oh, they did. Hicks rushed for 125 yards, Crayton for 101 and a touchdown. Fletcher whose position is slot back and who plays just about everywhere, scored three touchdowns.

As debuts go, this one was impressive.

Santa Ana was averaging 11 yards a carry in the first quarter but still failed to score. A fumble by Hicks on the Newport Harbor 10 killed an eight-play, 78-yard drive.

Fletcher scored his first touchdown on the first play of the second quarter, capping a 60-yard drive.

That drive best summed up the night. Hicks ran for 31 yards. Crayton followed with a 14-yard carry to the Newport Harbor 15. Fletcher then carried 15 yards for the touchdown.

Fletcher scored on Santa Ana’s next possession, this one a 3-play, 47-yard drive. After an incompletion, Hicks ran for 34 yards to the Newport Harbor 13; it gave Hicks 100 yards on five carries midway through the second quarter. Fletcher then went 13 yards for the score.

Hicks, a junior, backed up Lee last season and said he would very much like to be the Saints’ main guy. But with Santa Ana’s other two weapons, it doesn’t figure anyone will get that designation.

“We just have too much,” Hicks said.

Fletcher scored his last touchdown in the fourth quarter, this on a four-yard run. Crayton closed out the scoring with a 71-yard run. Cutting off left tackle, he outran the entire Newport Harbor secondary, even though his legs began to cramp halfway.

The only thing holding back a more lopsided score were four Santa Ana turnovers.

“Turnovers are like cramps,” Hill said. “You’ve got to try and work through them. We’re going to try with this team. This a young and innocent team, and we’ve got a ways to go.”

Considering Thursday’s result, Newport Harbor is probably happy Santa Ana will go on without it.