Fullerton Offense Does Its Part as Santa Ana Valley Tumbles

When two teams post lopsided victories like Fullerton and Santa Ana Valley did in their season openers, you’d expect fireworks when the two met the next week.

Fullerton, however, didn’t see it that way.

Santa Ana Valley, which notched a 35-point victory a week earlier, was on the other side of a thrashing Saturday, as visiting Fullerton scored a 38-0 nonleague victory at Santa Ana Stadium.

The Indians (2-0), who defeated Anaheim, 36-6, last week, used eight tailbacks Saturday, and they gained 240 yards. They were led by Ryan Murray, who rushed for 121 yards in just eight carries.

Fullerton held the Falcons to 83 yards of offense and three first downs in taking a 28-point halftime lead. After that, the Falcons had several opportunities to reach the end zone, but the Fullerton defense tightened and got its shutout.

“We’ll enjoy this for about 10 minutes and then forget about it,” said Fullerton Coach Julian Smilowitz. “But [a shutout] always helps team morale.”

The effect can work both ways.

“A shutout weighs very big,” said Santa Ana Valley Coach Eddie Steward. “Maybe this was a blessing. You hate to get beat like this but I think it taught us something.”

Steward said injuries forced him to start three sophomores on his defensive line, which Fullerton blasted through all night. It started with a 67-yard touchdown run by Murray early in the first quarter and ended with an eight-play, 63-yard drive for a touchdown to open the second half.

“Obviously Fullerton’s a good football team and I would never want to take anything away from them,” Steward said. “Even with a full line it would have been tough to beat them tonight.”

For a team that was shut out, the Falcon offense had its moments, as quarterback James Burgueno completed 13 of 32 passes for 192 yards, including seven receptions for 151 yards by George Robert. He had catches of 60 and 35 yards.

But the Falcons (1-1) had a net loss of 31 yards on the ground.

Fullerton’s Michael Echaves passed for two touchdowns, completing eight of 12 passes for 111 yards. His scoring passes came in a 20-second span of the second quarter, finding Abel Hernandez from 39 yards and, after a Falcon fumble, Daniel Fells from 24 yards.