Los Alamitos Falls Short in 10-7 Loss to Edison in Sunset League Opener

Los Alamitos' football team gambled for a victory but came up short as Edison stopped the Griffins on first-and-goal from the 10-yard line on the final play of the game to hold on for a 10-7 win in the Sunset League opener for both teams on Thursday night at Huntington Beach High.

It was a wild finish that was set up by a blocked punt by Griffin senior safety Daniel Tyler that put his team in position to tie or win the game with 48 seconds left in the game. The block gave the Griffins the ball at Edison's 33-yard line and a subsequent holding penalty helped move them to the 20.

But on fourth down and 18 seconds left to play, the Griffins attempted a 37-yard field goal for a tie. The kick sailed wide, but the Chargers were flagged for roughing the kicker, giving the Griffins the ball back with first-and-goal at the 10. Looking for the win, the Griffins ran a draw play to senior running back Cody Paul, but when he was stopped in the middle of the field, the clock ran out and Edison had its victory.

Afterward, Los Alamitos coach John Barnes second-guessed his decision to run the ball on the game's final play. “I thought he’d pop it for a touchdown," Barnes said. "We should have just kicked it.”

The Griffins had punted to Edison with 7:12 left in the game, and the Chargers proceeded to move the ball up the field and force Los Alamitos to burn its timeouts. The Griffins defense finally held and a Charger fumble forced them into a punting situation from midfield. That was when Tyler came around on a stunt and found a seam through the line to get to the punter and block the ball out of bounds, giving his team its last chance.

Edison had responded early in the fourth quarter after the Griffins had tied the score at 7-7 late in the third quarter. A pass from Chase Favreau to wide receiver Sedric Hill was compounded by a facemask penalty against the Griffins that moved the ball to the Los Alamitos nine-yard line. The Griffins' defense stiffened and the Chargers were forced to settle for junior kicker Aleksander Torgersen's field goal and a 10-7 lead.

Los Alamitos had put together a 13-play drive to get on the board and tie the score at 7-7 with 2:10 left in the third quarter. Senior quarterback Dylan Lagarde hit sophomore receiver Derrick Worthy with a 26-yard pass down to the Chargers four-yard line. After a one-yard loss, Paul ran it in for a five-yard touchdown.

“Both teams moved the ball, but didn’t have any points," Edison coach Dave White said. "I mean, both teams had a lot of offense with no points to show for it.”

The Griffins' defense kept the Chargers' offense out of the end zone, but the Chargers were able to take a 7-0 lead in the second quarter when senior Sedric Hill intercepted a pass in his own end zone and proceeded to return it 100 yards for a touchdown.

Edison had success moving the ball, but two lost fumbles thwarted drives. Likewise, the Griffins had several scoring chances but turned the ball over on downs twice inside the Chargers' 21-yard line and by the intercpetion.

Penalties also hurt the Griffins, but Barnes disagreed with many of the calls. “I thought the officials did a horrible job tonight,” he said.  

Paul finished with 141 yards rushing, and Lagarde threw for 91. Edison's Favreau ran for 80 yards and threw for another 57. Junior running back Elijah Herrera ran for 76 yards for the Chargers. The Griffins return home to host Fountain Valley in another Sunset League game next Thursday at Veterans Stadium.