BIG GAME : Mt. Carmel is Next Hill for Patriots

Like a fierce storm, Rancho Buena Vista pounded Orange Glen last week, sweeping through its defense and leaving little in its wake.

The toll: 48 points (34 in the first half) and 472 yards for the Longhorns. Before the game, Orange Glen had yielded just 41 points all season.

“It was one of those deals where they were ready to shoot the moon, and we weren’t,” Orange Glen Coach Rob Gilster said of the 48-15 beating.

Orange Glen is trying to pick up the pieces and get on with what had been a remarkably successful season. But attempting to do so at 7:30 tonight, the Patriots (5-2, 3-1) will travel to Mt. Carmel (5-2, 4-0), a school that is tied with RBV for the lead in the Palomar League.

“It’ll be a great test to see what kind of character we have coming off last week’s game,” Gilster said.

Said Mt. Carmel Coach Bill Christopher, “It’s going to be a big game for us. At least on paper, it looks very close.”

It is a big game, too, because the Sundevils will find themselves in the path of the Longhorns next week at Vista.

For the past two Palomar champions--Mt. Carmel won in 1987, Orange Glen in ‘88--this season has been a pleasant surprise for both schools.

Hit hard by graduation, Orange Glen, the 1988 3-A runner-up, was not expected to do much this season. But Gilster, who took over this season after Dave Lay left for San Diego State, has his team scoring nearly 19 points per game and allowing 12.7 (despite last week).

Quarterback Daren Wilkinson is ninth in the county, averaging 153.4 passing yards per game. Running back Ryan Strathearn is ninth with 108 rushing yards per game. The defense is led by junior linebacker Andy Buh.

Mt. Carmel, coming off a 4-6 season in ‘88, has won four in a row, including last week’s 35-16 drubbing of Torrey Pines. The Sundevils lead the league defensively, allowing just 11 points per game while scoring 17.1

Jeff Scott (81.4 yards per game) and Noel Tolumu (six touchdowns) handle the running game. Quarterback Matt Miller, averaging 91.4 yards passing per game, and Tony Eunucci (18 receptions, six touchdowns) take care of the air. Linebacker Derrick Roth (6-feet-4, 218 pounds) is a primary force on defense.

Of common opponents this season, both have defeated Escondido, Fallbrook, Poway and Torrey Pines, and both have lost to San Pasqual.

“Watching films we look very similar, especially on defense,” Christopher said. “It should be a good one.”

Said Gilster, “In our minds, it has the same kind of flavor of a championship game.”