Brea Roars Back in Second Half to Tie Western

Trailing by 21 points with 9 minutes 30 seconds left in the third quarter, Brea Olinda rallied for a 21-21 tie with Western Friday night in an Orange League opener Friday night at Western High.

Senior running back Kenny Washington propelled the second-half comeback for the Wildcats. Held to 34 yards rushing in the first half, Washington finished with 229 yards in 21 carries. He also scored two touchdowns.

Washington also contributed to the Brea (5-0-1, 0-0-1) effort with three pass receptions, a pass completion and two pass breakups on defense.

Brea Coach Jon Looney was understandably ambivalent about the outcome.

“I’m upset that we didn’t win the game,” he said, “but I’m happy we didn’t lose either. I’m proud of the way our team played in the second half.”

The first half was all Western (3-2-1, 0-0-1) as its Wing-T offense was flying high, but the momentum reverted to the Wildcats after David Gober’s 50-yard run gave the Pioneers a 21-0 lead early in the second half.

After Steve Stagnaro completed a 19-yard touchdown pass from Nick Stagnaro to get Brea on the board, Washington reached the end zone on runs of 48 and two yards to tie the score.

The Wildcats had a chance to win, but Tre’ Ballard intercepted Brian Woidneck’s pass in the end zone with 10 seconds left.