YORBA LINDA – For the fourth consecutive game, the Buena Park defense turned in a “don’t forget about us” performance.
Often overshadowed by their high-scoring offensive peers, the Coyotes (4-0) entered the game having allowed just six points through their first three games. They were at it again Friday, holding Esperanza (0-3) to one touchdown in a 20-7 victory at Yorba Linda High.
“I’m proud of our team,” Buena Park coach Anthony White said. “We had a lot of young guys stepping up and doing well.”
Sophomore defensive end Cedric Dashiell stood out with three sacks.
“He’s a team leader already,” White said of Dashiell. “We expect great things from him. Our defense is playing well.”
The Coyotes defense stopped a potential Esperanza scoring drive to start the second half. The Aztecs moved the ball from their own 20 to the Buena Park 7 before fumbling a snap on third down.
“We had to stop the run,” White said. “Esperanza is a great program for a lot of years and we know they’re hard-nosed so, it was great for our team to do that. Holding them to seven points is exactly what we practiced.”
Late in the fourth quarter, Esperanza again drove inside the Buena Park 10-yard line. The Coyotes came up with another stop with 3:59 left.
The Aztecs, who will compete in the Crestview League, took away some positives from the defeat.
“We have some fight in us,” Esperanza coach Gary Bowers said. “Our kids played with a lot of emotion tonight and they wanted this game, but again, mistakes in the red zone killed us.”
Buena Park opened with a quick touchdown when quarterback Zach Taylor took off for a 65-yard run on the third play.
The Coyotes scored on their second possession when Taylor hooked up with Max Rivera for a 29-yard touchdown and a 13-0 lead.
After that, the game settled into a defensive struggle. The Aztecs were led by linebacker Anthony Koclanakis, who proved to be a disruptive force all night, finishing with three sacks.
“We were going to go right after them,” Bowers said. “Everybody had been sitting back and letting them do their own thing (on offense) … we said we’re going to go out with our guns blazing and come after them and put heat on them, be physical and get in their quarterback face.”
The Aztecs got on the board late in the first quarter when Brett Mullins’ 8-yard touchdown run cut Buena Park’s lead to 13-7.
Taylor scored the final touchdown of the game with a 1-yard sneak with five minutes left in the second quarter.
Buena Park has a bye next week. Esperanza will host Canyon Thursday.
Contact the writer: dcalhoun@ocregister.com
