Santa Ana Valley Overcomes Miscues to Win

Not every victory will look picture-perfect.

“It was kind of an ugly win, but we’ll take it,” Santa Ana Valley High Coach Eddie Steward said after his Falcons beat Bolsa Grande, 35-13, in a nonleague game Friday night at Santa Ana Stadium.

Santa Ana Valley (3-1) was flagged for eight penalties for 77 yards.

The Falcons’ David Guevara picked off an Alex Guadarrama pass at the Matador 31 yard-line late in the first quarter to set up Santa Ana Valley’s first score. Five plays later, Miguel Guerrero connected with Guevara for a 10-yard touchdown.

Guerrero completed nine of 22 passes for 146 yards and rushed for 40 yards in seven carries. He also scored two touchdowns.

The Falcons again took advantage of excellent field position on their next possession. A bad snap on a Matador punt attempt gave Santa Ana Valley the ball at the Bolsa Grande 26. The Falcons needed only three plays before Guerrero ran in from two yards to make the score 14-0 with 5 minutes 19 seconds left in the half.

Bolsa Grande responded on the next series as Guadarrama hit a wide-open Jesse Jasso for a 53-yard touchdown on fourth and nine with 1:27 remaining in the half. Jasso caught two passes for 85 yards.

Bolsa Grande’s losing streak was extended to 20 games.