La Mirada, Errors Sink Century, 30-0
La Mirada capitalized on seven turnovers by Century to overwhelm the Centurions, 30-0, Saturday at Santa Ana Stadium.
La Mirada (1-2) recovered four fumbles and intercepted three passes by quarterback Stanley Villanueva. The Matador defense also held Reggie Alvarez, the Centurions’ leading rusher, to 34 yards.
After Eric Martinez opened the scoring with a 28-yard field goal early in the second half, La Mirada quickly extended the lead when Albert Smith returned a tipped Villanueva pass 44 yards for a touchdown to make the score 10-0 with 5:34 left in the half.
Villanueva, a sophomore, started in place of Ricky Odoardi, who suffered a concussion in last week’s game against Los Amigos.
“We had a lot of kids out there for the first time because of injuries,” Century Coach Bill Brown said. “You’ve got to expect some mistakes.”
La Mirada extended its lead on the final play of the half when quarterback Mike Moschetti found J.R. Michel for a 42-yard touchdown as time expired.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Matadors recovered a Century fumble at midfield, and two plays later, Ryan Hura scored on a 20-yard run to make it 23-0. Hura led all rushers with 114 yards in 19 carries.
Century (0-2-1) threatened only once, driving to the La Mirada 15 after two Villanueva completions midway through the second quarter. But the Centurions’ opportunity ended when the Matadors recovered a fumbled exchange. They got no closer than the La Mirada 35 afterward.
“This is nothing new for us. We’ve had trouble scoring all season,” Brown said. “We’ve got to be able to put points on the board to be at all successful.”
The Matadors closed the scoring with 4:01 left when Moschetti connected with Jeff Hallock for a 22-yard touchdown pass. Moschetti completed seven of 12 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns.
