Home, at last

Mike Sciacca

Tonight’s battle with Costa Mesa High marks the fourth game of the

2003 prep football season for Laguna Beach and finally, the Breakers

will play at home.

Having spent the first three weeks of the season on the road,

Laguna gets the chance to play within the friendly confines of Guyer

Field when it hosts the Mustangs in a 7 p.m. nonleague tilt.

“Yeah, it’s nice to finally come home,” said Coach Dave Holland,

whose Breakers opened the season at Palos Verdes, then played La

Quinta and Bolsa Grande on successive weekends at Bolsa Grande

Stadium in Garden Grove.

Laguna returns home with a 3-0 record.

The Breakers will be meeting a Costa Mesa (1-1) team that thumped

Huntington Beach last week, 33-16, for its first win of the season.

The Mustangs, who dropped their season opener to Corona del Mar,

19-14, dominated Huntington in the second half to pull away from a

17-10 halftime lead.

Costa Mesa’s defense scored defensive touchdowns in the second

half on a recovered blocked punt in the end zone and a fumble return.

“They’re a tough football team,” Holland said of the Mustangs.

“They are a power team that is a little more diversified on offense

this year. They had a close loss to Corona del Mar.”

In beating a Bolsa Grande program that hasn’t won a football game

since the 1999 season, Laguna managed just a 7-0 halftime lead before

bolting to a 28-6 lead in the fourth quarter.

Bolsa Grande rallied late, but the Breakers held on for the win.

Alex Wilson had another strong game at quarterback for Laguna. The

senior completed 14 of 18 attempts without an interception for 179

yards.

He threw three touchdown passes, one an eight-yard toss to Elliot

Whalen, the final two to his favorite target, senior Jake Wheeler.

Wheeler’s touchdown receptions covered 59 and 31 yards and he

finished with 142 yards on eight catches.

Defensively, the Breakers recovered three fumbles.

The 20 points they gave up to the Matadors matched the point total

they had allowed in their first two games.

Last year’s score: Laguna 16, Costa Mesa 14

*--*

Laguna Beach (3-0)

33 Palos Verdes 13

50 La Quinta 7

28 Bolsa Grande 20

*--*

Game note: Laguna Beach High has announced a safety rule for all

home football games, beginning tonight.

School officials are asking that an adult accompany students of

elementary and junior high school age to any home game. Students who

come to the front gate without adult supervision will not be admitted

to the game and no admittance to the stadium will be allowed after

the third quarter.

In other football news, the Laguna Beach football boosters will

hold their annual wine tasting and dinner from 6 to 10 p.m. on

Saturday (Sept. 27) at Len’s Wine Cite located at 303 Broadway St.

Reservations include dinner, wine tasting and raffle ticket. The

cost is $35 per person in advance and $50 at the door.

For reservations and more information call (949) 376-6305.