Defense, Starr Shine as Orange Beats Villa Park

James Starr passed for 251 yards and rushed for a touchdown to lead Orange to a 21-14 victory over Villa Park in a Century League game at El Modena High School.

Starr completed 13 of 24 passes to lead the Panthers’ offense, but it was the Orange defense that came up big at the end of the game.

Trailing 21-14, Spartan linebacker Paul Neilson recovered a fumble at the Orange 23-yard line with less than three minutes to play. The Spartans drove to the Orange two, but on fourth-and-goal with 40 seconds left in the game, Chance Perry tackled Dache Dameron for a six-yard loss to preserve the victory.

The Panthers (3-3, 1-0) took a 7-0 lead with 3:43 left in the first quarter when Derald Deason scored from one yard out. On the run, Deason appeared to be stopped in the backfield, but spun away from three Villa Park tacklers.

Orange was in position to score again on its next possession, but a blocked field-goal attempt and a 34-yard return by Roman Roacho gave the Spartans the ball at the Orange 20. With 46 seconds left in the first half, Dameron went over right tackle from three yards out, but the point-after kick by Matt McClary was low and Villa Park (2-4, 0-1) still trailed, 7-6.

Villa Park took the second-half kickoff and went 51 yards in six plays with Jim Ulloa scoring from 10 yards out, but it was all Orange the rest of the way. Starr’s one-yard plunge with 4:28 left in the third tied the score and Perry’s 15-yard run with 5:08 left in the game gave Orange the lead.