Laguna Hills Edges Century, Creating 4-Way Tie for Lead

A poor pitchout Friday night in Santa Ana Stadium scrambled the Pacific Coast League playoff picture.

Century High School quarterback Johnny Martinez tossed a pitchout that turned the game around and Laguna Hills ended the Centurions’ six-game winning streak with a 9-7 victory.

The victory, coupled with Trabuco Hills’ 20-17 loss to Estancia, created a four-way tie for first place. Trabuco Hills, Estancia, Century and Laguna Hills are 2-1 in the six-team league with two games remaining.

Martinez’s errant pitch wound up in his end zone for a safety. The play also sparked Laguna Hills’ lethargic offense; tailback Dave Webber scored two minutes later to give the Hawks a 9-0 lead.

Century (6-2, 2-1 in league) came back to score with 2:17 remaining when tailback Juan Garcia scored on a one-yard run, but a subsequent onside kick was unsuccessful.

Century had no problems moving the ball from its 30-yard line to Laguna Hills’ 30, but penalties and some poor passing by Martinez stopped most of the drives.

Century’s defense continued to shine. The Centurions have allowed an average of 8 1/2 points per game, but the turnover on their three-yard line was a crucial mistake. Century Coach Bill Brown wouldn’t say the play turned the game around, but he did say, “I’d like to have that play back.”

Laguna Hills (4-3-1, 2-1) relied on the running of Webber to generate most of its offense.

Webber gained 142 yards in 30 carries, including a 35-yard touchdown run with 5:09 remaining. Laguna Hills wasn’t as effective passing. Quarterback Justin Vedder threw as many completions as interceptions (two).

Afterward, Laguna Hills Coach Steve Bresnahan said his team was fortunate to score nine points against one of the county’s best defensive teams.

“We were fortunate to get the safety and then Dave Webber makes a fine run,” Bresnahan said. “They’ve got a good defense and haven’t allowed many points this year, so we had to have an equally good defensive performance.”

Laguna Hills’ defense, led by lineman Greg Defelice, limited Century to 106 yards passing with 64 yards coming in the Centurions’ final drive. Garcia was Century’s only effective weapon, gaining 108 yards in 22 carries.