THE BIG GAME / MT. CARMEL 27, VISTA 12 : Sundevils Hit the Ground, Foes Running

On a night when the attention was focused on Vista Coach Dick Haines’ quest for his 309th career victory, the catchword was speed. In front of about 4,500, Mt. Carmel had too much of it.

No. 10 Mt. Carmel scored three touchdowns from beyond 76 yards--two on offense, one on defense--and scored a 27-12 victory over fifth-ranked Vista.

Mt. Carmel’s victory spoiled Haines’ bid to become the 10th-winningest high school football coach of all time. His career record over 41 years is 308-112-11, tied with Walter S. Brooks, who coached from 1936-74 in Utah.

“They out-coached us, outplayed us, outran us, out-passed us and out-hit us,” Haines said. “They’ve got the talent, and they’re doing the right things with it.”

Mt. Carmel won the game with its speed. Its three offensive touchdown drives totaled four plays. A week ago, against Rancho Buena Vista, its first three scores came on its first five offensive plays of the game. and so it went against Vista.

Marlin Carey scored on Mt. Carmel’s second play of the game, a 28-yard run, after Ken Pohl’s interception of a Bryan Cox third down pass. That was the short scoring run of the night, but Carey displayed the quickness that later helped him score on an 89-yard run in the third quarter to stretch the lead to 21-6.

“Any way we can score, that’s the way we like it,” said Carey, who has nine touchdowns this season. “It seems like we’re always making the big plays.”

Carey rushed 19 times for 208 yards.

Mt. Carmel led, 14-7, at halftime, but it might have been 21 points if not for a pass that trickled off the fingertips of Darrell Manning, who was wide open on a fake punt at the Mt. Carmel 41.

On the next play, Vista running back Dan Sears emerged from the pileup in which he must have been touched by every Sundevil defender.

The touchdown, with 5:11 left in the second quarter, cut Mt. Carmel’s lead to 7-6. It might have tied the game, but Tighe Jaffe blocked Jack Esquibel’s point-after attempt.

The Sundevils struck again with 49 seconds left in the half. Erik Manning forced Vista quarterback Cox to fumble at the end of a 25-yard drive that took the Panthers to the Mt. Carmel 24.

Pohl recovered, and on the next play, Damian Dolin hit wide receiver Charles Dejurnett over the middle. Dejurnett broke the leg tackle of Jeremy Sahagun and went 76 yards. Trong Nguyen converted the second of his three points-after for a 14-6 halftime lead.

Mt. Carmel’s final score came with 25 seconds remaining. Nick Harris intercepted a Cox pass and returned it 78 yards.

Mt. Carmel has scored 19 times this season, and 11 have come from beyond 40 yards.

The Sundevils’ defense shut down Vista twice early in the third quarter after the Panthers got the ball at the Mt. Carmel 26- and 28-yard lines after a blocked punt and a 42-yard Steve Chatham punt return.

“Out defensive coaches really stressed the tackling aspects of the game this week,” Mt. Carmel Coach Doug Kamon said. “One of our goals this week was to tackle better. . . . We knew they were not going to be able to run the ball because we felt we were faster than them.”