North Posts First Win, a 42-21 Rout

North Torrance High won its first game of the year and first-year Coach Tony Uruburu won the first of his career, as the Saxons routed Beverly Hills 42-21 in a non-league game at North Thursday night.

Uruburu, true to his intense coaching style, fretted throughout the contest, despite the score, until the final play. After the gun, he smiled broadly, and began to accept congratulations from well-wishers as he strode onto the playing field. He gave a simple explanation for the win: “We played our butts off.”

The Saxons (1-2) scored on their first four possessions on the way to a 35-7 halftime lead.The first scoring drive covered 64 yards in eight plays, with Lacy Watkins scoring on a sweep to the right from 13 yards out. Watkins rushed for a game-high 148 yards on 19 carries and three touchdowns.

Watkins gave North a 28-7 lead at the start of the second quarter when he duplicated the sweep for an 89-yard touchdown.

When Watkins wasn’t running, quarterback Rocky Jackson was hitting his receivers. He threw for two touchdowns and 130 yards on 9-for-16 passing.

“We played harder than we’ve been playing,” Jackson said. “This feels better than losing.”

Jackson also started at cornerback for North, and helped limit the talented Beverly Hills duo of quarterback Chris Wallace and receiver Taylor Humphries to one catch for 11 yards in the first half. Beverly Hills (1-2) scored its only first-half points on a 92-yard kickoff return by Mike Hakim.