Midseason Report for OC Football Teams

The football season is at the halfway point for the five Orange County teams, so it’s time for a brief update on each, in the order of their position in the standings:

Orange Coast (3-2): The Pirates started with the most potential and, with a three-game winning streak, they are starting to realize it. Jeff Clayton, a redshirt freshman from Trabuco Hills, has rushed for 501 yards and scored seven touchdowns, five in the last two games. Todd Mather, a sophomore quarterback, already has surpassed his numbers of last season. He is 50 of 88 for 759 yards, three touchdowns and four interceptions.

“We’re starting to do a lot of little things better, including coming together as a team,” OCC Coach Bill Workman said.

Golden West (3-2): The Rustlers were picked last in the Central Division but are off to a strong start. Steve Walker is 57 of 89 for 599 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions. Eddie Benson (348 yards rushing) and Vance Senteno (340) give Golden West a strong combination at tailback. Mike Haxton, a freshman defensive lineman, leads in tackles with 41. He also has a team-high 5 1/2 sacks.

Golden West has eight interceptions and eight fumble recoveries and has turned over the ball four times.

Fullerton (2-3): Getting leads hasn’t been a problem for Fullerton under first-year Coach Gene Murphy. It’s holding onto them that has been the challenge. The Hornets led, 24-0, against Cerritos but lost, 31-24, and were ahead of Golden West, 14-0, before losing, 15-14.

Fullerton has outscored opponents, 79-44, in the first half but been outscored, 76-24, in the second half. The Hornets’ best offensive players are wide receivers Vince Wilson and Ryan Roskelly. Wilson had 32 receptions for 544 yards and Roskelly has 27 for 400.

Saddleback (2-3): No one expected Saddleback to show its national championship form of 1992, but no one figured the Gauchos would play as poorly as they have in the last two weeks. Saddleback was blown out by Mt. San Antonio, 40-12, then lost, 17-13, to Riverside, which had lost nine consecutive games before Saturday.

Scott von der Ahe, a sophomore middle linebacker, is one of the few consistent performers for the Gauchos. He has a team-high 60 tackles, including 7 1/2 sacks.

Rancho Santiago (1-3-1): The Dons started well, with a 28-28 tie with Cerritos and a come-from-behind 37-36 victory against El Camino. But things haven’t gone as well since.

The defense has taken the brunt of the punishment, giving up 134 points in the three losses. But two of the losses were against Palomar and Mt. San Antonio, two of the top teams in Southern California. The second-half schedule figures to be a bit easier for the Dons.

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Finally: Rancho Santiago, which had not won an Orange Empire Conference women’s volleyball match since 1988, won two last week.

Brenda Parks and Chris Vega had 12 kills each as Rancho Santiago beat Orange Coast, 15-9, 15-2, 15-13, Wednesday.

Parks came back with 15 kills as Coach Fran Cummings’ Dons beat Cypress, 15-3, 8-15, 15-9, 15-6, Friday to make it two in a row.

Rancho Santiago’s Kathy Farina, a freshman setter from El Modena High School, had 56 assists and nine kills in the two matches.

Notes

Palomar (6-0) is the top-ranked football team in the Southland Poll. Bakersfield (5-0) is second, Long Beach (6-0) third, Mt. San Antonio (5-1) fourth, Cerritos (4-0-1) fifth, Los Angeles Valley (5-0-1) sixth, San Bernardino Valley (4-1) seventh, Orange Coast (3-2) eighth, College of the Desert (4-1) ninth and Moorpark (3-2) is 10th.

Irvine Valley remains the top-ranked team in the Southern California women’s cross-country poll. Mt. San Antonio is second, San Diego Mesa third, Glendale fourth, Orange Coast fifth, El Camino sixth, Long Beach seventh, Rancho Santiago eighth, Santa Monica ninth and Cuesta is 10th.

Mt. San Antonio is atop the men’s poll. Riverside is second, Cuyamaca is third, El Camino is fourth, Rancho Santiago is fifth, Glendale sixth, Long Beach seventh, Antelope Valley eighth, San Diego Mesa ninth and Irvine Valley is No. 10.