Irvine Gets the Best of Tustin : Football: Vaqueros get physical and beat the Tillers at their own game in 10-0 Sea View victory.

Irvine, a new kid on the block in the Sea View League, beat the local bully at its own game Saturday night.

Defense, power running and just general tooth-spitting football--all well-known traits of Tustin--were done better by the Vaqueros. They controlled and punished and came away with a 10-0 victory at Irvine High School.

The Vaqueros (3-1, 1-0) moved over from the South Coast League this season and were announcing their arrival. Their defense rumbled and senior running back Scott Seal rambled, gaining 228 yards.

“That was a physical game,” Coach Terry Henigan said. “We won the physical game. I like that.”

Normally, that honor goes to Tustin, a team well known for its nastiness. The Tillers have slugged their way to back-to-back league titles, but on this night they were the ones cold-cocked.

The Vaqueros’ defense, led by linebacker Ryan Jones and defensive back Dave Bilek, held Tustin to 188 yards. It was another dismal performance for the Tillers (1-3, 0-1), who have scored only 17 points in their last three games and are off to their worst start since 1988.

Their mix-and-match running backs, Lamar Barrett and Keith Thomas, found little room to run and no where to hide. In fact, the Tiller running game was reduced to bootlegs by quarterback Jason Reynolds, who gained 73 yards.

The closest the Tillers got was the Irvine 29-yard line in the second quarter. That drive ended in on a botched field-goal attempt.

They got to the 34 in the second half, but defensive back Chris Esmond snagged a Reynolds’ pass, one of two Tustin turnovers.

“The defense did the job,” Henigan said.

As did Seal, who put in overtime.

He carried the ball 34 times, slashing and cutting his way through the Tustin defense. The Vaqueros’ 80-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter was a Seal production.

He carried the ball six times for 54 yards, finishing it off with an eight-yard run. Seal has 608 yards rushing and six touchdowns this season.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do next year,” Henigan said. “I’m so used to running around and giving the ball to No. 40.”

Said Seal: “I knew I was going to get a lot of work tonight, but 34 carries? I’m pretty tired.”

But, in the end, it was the Tillers who looked worn out.