Brea Makes It Exciting Before Losing

When a football team loses two-thirds of its players to graduation, sometimes the best it can do the following season is keep games interesting.

Brea Olinda did that Friday night, right up to the final minutes of its Division IX semifinal against second-seeded West Covina South Hills.

The third-seeded Wildcats scored two touchdowns in the closing minutes, but South Hills answered with one of its own and held on for a 31-20 victory at Covina District Stadium, clinching the Huskies’ first berth in a section final in 20 years.

“We just made our surge a little too late,” said Brea Olinda junior quarterback Steve Stagnaro. “But we’ll be back next year. You can count on that.”

The Wildcats (9-4) trailed, 24-7, with just under seven minutes left, but cut the lead to 10 with a four-play drive capped by Stagnaro’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Manuel Gutierrez with 6:36 remaining.

Brea got the ball back with just under five minutes remaining and Stagnaro found Alfonso Guerrero down the sideline for a 78-yard touchdown pass less than a minute later. South Hills defensive back Jason Murray, who was beaten on the touchdown, came back to block Matt Votaw’s point-after attempt and the Huskies clung to a 24-20 lead.

Brea tried its second consecutive onside kick, but South Hills again recovered at midfield. The Huskies didn’t try to run out the clock this time, instead going back to the short passing game that had been successful for much of the game.

Quarterback Chris Eadie completed a key 14-yard pass to Brandon White on third and 11, then dumped a short pass to Jaron Fairman, who turned it into a 36-yard touchdown with 2:53 remaining.

The Wildcats got the ball back twice more, but both drives ended with interceptions.

“They got after us with their pass rush,” Brea Coach Robb Perrance said. “Our guys were having a hard time figuring out what they were doing, but once they figured it out, then we were able to do some things.”

South Hills appeared unstoppable on its first two drives. The Huskies went 68 yards in nine plays on their opening possession, scoring on a one-yard run by Marcus Nolan.

After Brea was unable to earn a first down on its first drive, South Hills took advantage of a facemask penalty on the ensuing punt to start on the Wildcat 45. On the next play, Brea Olinda’s Ben Wilson batted down Eadie’s pass, but then batted down Eadie and was flagged for roughing the passer.

Eadie then lateraled in the backfield to Nolan, who caught the ball in stride and raced 30 yards for a touchdown. Fairman followed with a two-point reception and the Huskies led, 14-0, with six minutes remaining in the first quarter.

Brea Olinda finally stopped the Huskies on their next possession and Guerrero followed with a 72-yard touchdown reception to cut the lead to 14-7.

South Hills got the first of its four interceptions later in the second quarter. The Huskies marched into Brea territory, and Adrian Rosales kicked a 48-yard field goal for a 17-7 lead with five minutes remaining in the first half.