Courvetier Sparks Magnolia

Magnolia’s Ariel Courvetier never imagined a hat trick of touchdowns.

“No, I didn’t think of anything like this,” said the 6-foot-2 senior, who gained 129 yards in 15 carries and scored two of his three touchdowns on fourth-and-goal situations to lead Magolia to a 27-17 victory in the season opener for both teams Friday night at Glover Stadium.

Courvetier’s four-yard touchdown run in the third quarter gave the Sentinels a 21-17 lead. His performance offset Katella quarterback Chris Reed’s 207 yards passing.

The Knights’ quarterback was 18 for 32 with one touchdown in his first start and was intercepted once.

Reed completed only six of 13 second-half passes as Magnolia’s defense held the Knights scoreless in the last two quarters.

Quarterback Josh Acosta’s three-yard keeper for a touchdown put the game out of reach with 3:35 remaining.

Katella led, 17-14, at halftime after Reed led the Knights to touchdowns on their first and final possessions of the half.

The opening drive went 76 yards on 19 plays and culminated with Gary Hennessy’s one-yard touchdown run.

Courvetier scored twice in 90 seconds for both Magnolia’s touchdowns in the first half. His first score came on a 48-yard run on the first play of the second quarter.