CdM football wins Battle of the Bay, improves to 7-0
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At times in what has thus far been an unblemished season, Corona del Mar has been able to put teams away early with a well-balanced attack.
While the Sea Kings got scores from both the passing and the running game in the early going, that initial output provided just enough separation in another test against their crosstown rival.
Chase Kuchera had two rushing touchdowns and the Sea Kings’ defense racked up seven sacks, as CdM pulled away from Newport Harbor late for a 21-6 win in the Battle of the Bay football game at Orange Coast College on Saturday night.
“This game’s amazing,” Kuchera said after the victory, played in front of a near-capacity crowd. “This place was rocking tonight. We knew it was going to be. We knew we had to come out strong. We started off hot, slow in the [middle], but our defense played amazing, [offensive] line played awesome, and this game is a great game. So happy we were able to pull out the win tonight.”
Corona del Mar (7-0, 2-0 in the Bravo League) earned its first win in the rivalry since 2022. Newport Harbor (2-5, 0-2) presented a significant challenge, a secondary led by Trevor Glynn and Luke Garrido endeavoring to eliminate explosive plays in the passing game.
The exceptions came when Brady Annett targeted Garrett James, whose first catch was a 39-yard touchdown at the start of the second quarter, doubling the CdM lead to 14-0.
James, who was held to three catches on eight targets, added a 44-yard catch in the third quarter, but it didn’t cost the Sailors points. Linebacker Cameron Hatfield rallied to the football on an Annett red-zone scramble, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Glynn at the Newport Harbor 7-yard line.
“Our coverage gave them a hard time,” Newport Harbor coach Matt Burns said. “That was really one of the big selling points of keeping that score down, I think.”
Jordan Spigarelli, a JSerra transfer, drew the start at quarterback for the Sailors. Burns said first-string quarterback Jake Meer was dealing with a concussion.
In the latter stages of the second quarter, Spigarelli led the Sailors back into the contest, completing all four of his passes for 34 yards and carrying the ball three times for 18 yards on a drive of nearly five minutes that covered 61 yards. He finished it off with a 5-yard rushing touchdown, trimming the CdM lead to 14-6 with 2:45 left in the half.
The score remained the same and the game hung in the balance into the fourth quarter. Annett then decided to make a play with his feet, too. Following an Owen Baldikowski sack and a delay-of-game penalty, the Sailors were backed up, facing third down and 20 yards away from a first down. Annett took off for a 26-yard gain, a game-breaking run that set up Kuchera’s second score.
“I think we feel good,” Annett said when asked about CdM’s potential as the season progresses. “I think we’re definitely capable of going 10-0, and we’ll see when we get in the playoffs, but we’re ready to roll.”
Kuchera carried the ball 13 times for 69 yards, his 26-yard touchdown in the first quarter matching the Sea Kings’ longest run of the night.
Inside linebackers Scott Anderson and Alexander Nickin each had 2½ sacks for CdM. Defensive lineman Damian Zeno-Herrera and outside linebacker Cash Pearsall recorded a sack apiece. Pearsall added an interception in coverage down the field, returning momentum to the Sea Kings after the Glynn fumble recovery.
Pearsall called the environment around the rivalry a “one-of-a-kind game.”
“There was nothing but excitement and joy to get out here on the field and just do our thing,” said Pearsall, whose interception was his third of the season. “The whole week, we were preaching, ‘Don’t listen to the noise.’ There’s a lot of hype around this game, there’s going to be way more fans, different stadium, we know there’s going to be a lot of outside noise, and our whole goal this week was to lock in on us and just do our thing, stay to our standard, and we’re going to get this win. That’s exactly what we did.”
Shane McKibbin had seven catches for 79 yards to lead Newport Harbor, which returns home to face San Juan Hills (5-2, 1-1) on Friday at Davidson Field.
“It takes an entire team to win this game,” CdM coach Kevin Hettig said. “I’ve been in 15 of them. There may have been three there in the late [2010s] that were out of reach, but it’s always going to be a close game. These kids play so hard in this game.”
Hettig indicated he feels the Battle of the Bay is just part of the larger narrative of what could become a special season.
“These kids genuinely care about this game … ,” Hettig said. “But this doesn’t define our season. … We won this game, but what we’ve done leading up to this is what’s special.”
Corona del Mar pays a visit to Villa Park (4-3, 1-1) in a game at Fred Kelly Stadium on Friday.
Bravo League
Corona del Mar 21, Newport Harbor 6
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Newport Harbor 0 - 6 - 0 - 0 — 6
Corona del Mar 7 - 7 - 0 - 7 — 21
FIRST QUARTER
CdM — Kuchera 26 run (DiBella kick), 5:42.
SECOND QUARTER
CdM — James 39 pass from Annett (DiBella kick), 11:13.
NH — Spigarelli 5 run (Rico kick failed), 2:45.
THIRD QUARTER
None.
FOURTH QUARTER
CdM — Kuchera 4 run (DiBella kick), 5:08.
INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
NH — Takamori, 8-31; Spigarelli, 5-30, 1 TD; Yamakawa, 1-5; Baranoski, 1-0; Stremick, 1-(-5); Team, 7-(-65).
CdM — Kuchera, 13-69, 2 TDs; Annett, 4-38; Nixon, 7-29; Stecker, 3-2; Team, 1-(-9).
INDIVIDUAL PASSING
NH — Spigarelli, 16-33-1, 159.
CdM — Annett, 10-22-0, 170, 1 TD.
INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING
NH — McKibbin, 7-79; Stremick, 2-31; Hancock, 1-16; Wilson, 2-14; Ditteaux, 1-10; Yamakawa, 2-7; Takamori, 1-2.
CdM — James, 3-89, 1 TD; Herrera, 2-38; Stecker, 4-31; Haley, 1-12.
