Pacifica Links Its Success to Hajnal

The catalyst for Pacifica’s improbable run to the Southern Section Division VIII championship game has probably been an improved running game. The heroes have been kicker Nathan Kolano, who won the game against Lakewood Mayfair with a last-minute field goal, and safety Jason Simpson, who made four touchdown-saving tackles on Leo Kosi against Rancho Alamitos.

But without the missing link--Rowland Hajnal--Pacifica’s improbable run probably would not have been possible.

Hajnal, who transferred from Garden Grove last spring, leads the Mariners in tackles with 82, in sacks with 10 and in fumble recoveries with four. In Saturday’s 21-6 semifinal victory over second-seeded Rancho Alamitos, Hajnal had a sack, two fumble recoveries and a blocked punt, which took the life out of the Vaqueros and led to Pacifica’s third touchdown.

It’s probably no coincidence that since Hajnal moved from defensive tackle to defensive end before the last regular-season game, Pacifica’s defense has been stingier and its pass rush more aggressive.

“He was a little too small to play inside,” Mariner Coach Bill Craven said. “At defensive end we’ve been able to take advantage of his quickness a lot more on the outside.”

Hajnal, a 6-foot-1, 235-pound senior, said he’s not used to having quickness and his name mentioned in the same sentence.

“I lost weight and gained quickness since last year,” he said. “I lost 15 pounds and improved my 40 time from 5.4 to 5.0. I guess that extra weight was really holding me back. I like it a lot on the outside.”

Hajnal likes it even better that he’s still playing football in December. Had he stayed at Garden Grove, his season and his high school career would be over. Hajnal said he moved to the Pacifica attendance area last spring with his father when his parents separated.

“They made up and I decided to stay here,” said Hajnal, who played with Pacifica during the summer. “I thought they had a great team and I was looking to improve. You can go one place and you learn one thing, and you go another place and you learn some more.”

Garden Grove Coach Ralph Stevens said he wasn’t ecstatic when Hajnal, a first-team all-league defensive lineman, told him he was transferring.

“I let him know it was going to be his senior year and all his friends were here,” Stevens said. “I didn’t want to see him go. He’s a good ballplayer, but he had his mind made up.”

Stevens said he “checked into” Hajnal’s transfer but nothing improper was discovered by either school.

“It’s a done deal,” Stevens said. “It’s water under the bridge now.”

Strictly a defensive player when he played for Stevens, Hajnal has become an effective two-way player at Pacifica. He has started the entire season at offensive tackle, creating holes for running back Paul Toepel, who has rushed for 270 yards in three playoff games, and buying time for quarterback J.D. Stern, who has passed for 2,274 yards and 18 touchdowns this season.

“He just plays hard all the time,” Craven said. “I don’t think Rowland’s had a bad game all year, but he probably had his best game against Rancho Alamitos last week.”

Hajnal said he hopes to have a better one Friday night against top-seeded Aliso Niguel.

“You set yourself up for a challenge and [running back Scott] Nemeth is going to be a challenge,” Hajnal said. “He’s a big guy and he can run with the ball. But I love it. I love the competition and I love the chance to stop these big guys. We stopped [Laguna Hills back] Michael Jones. I figure once you stop those big backs, you can stop their team.”

Hajnal said he isn’t surprised Pacifica, a wild-card entry in the playoffs, has stopped three teams and reached the finals. The Mariners defeated third-seeded Laguna Hills, 17-13, in the first round of the playoffs.

“It wasn’t that we had so much to lose in the playoffs, but so much to prove,” he said.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Starting Lineups

Pacifica

OFFENSE

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P No. Name Yr. Ht. Wt. QB 10 J.D. Stern Sr. 5-11 165 RB 36 Paul Toepel Sr. 6-1 215 FB 35 Jeff Burt Sr. 6-0 212 WR 88 Geoff Gilpin Sr. 6-3 185 WR 16 Paul Tessier Sr. 5-10 160 WR 28 Casey Huffmire Sr. 5-9 165 C 53 Ryan Woods Sr. 6-1 245 G 54 Ramez Ammari Jr. 5-9 200 G 55 Jon Guenther Jr. 6-0 230 T 77 Chris MacDonald Sr. 6-2 275 T 59 Rowland Hajnal Sr. 6-1 235 K 1 Nathan Kolano Sr. 5-5 125

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DEFENSE

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P No. Name Yr. Ht. Wt. DE 45 Wes Choate Sr. 6-1 195 DE 59 Rowland Hajnal Sr. 6-1 235 DT 55 Jon Guenther Jr. 6-0 230 DT 58 Sean Milligan Sr. 6-0 265 OLB 47 John Dorenbos So. 6-0 195 OLB 21 Brian Manley Jr. 5-10 175 LB 54 Ramez Ammari Jr. 5-9 200 LB 35 Jeff Burt Sr. 6-0 210 CB 81 Rich Campos Sr. 5-10 175 CB 32 Scott Yoast Sr. 6-1 175 S 8 Jason Simpson So. 5-9 155 P 16 Paul Tessier Sr. 5-10 160

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Coach: Bill Craven

Pacifica’s Season

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31 Woodbridge 22 20 Huntington Beach 6 24 Westminster 7 42 La Quinta 7 20 Los Amigos 23 7 Rancho Alamitos 10 35 Garden Grove 21 33 Santiago 36 41 Bolsa Grande 21

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Playoffs

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17 Laguna Hills 13 15 Lakewood Mayfair 13 21 Rancho Alamitos 6

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