ORANGE – The Mike Ogas era at Canyon didn’t start so well, but it sure turned around in a hurry.
After an 0-6 start, where the Comanches were outscored 200-66, Canyon finished off a second-half-of-the-season surge with a 28-14 win over El Modena on Thursday night, clinching the inaugural North Hills League title and a CIF-SS playoff berth.
The Comanches (4-6, 3-0) won their final four games of the season to earn their first outright league title in school history.
“Who would have thought, after 0-6, right?” said Ogas, who is in his first year as head coach at Canyon. “It’s a special moment. I’m happy for this school and I’m happy for these kids, who haven’t won a lot.”
In a game that was mostly even throughout, Canyon distanced itself from El Modena (3-7, 1-2) with momentum-shifting plays, which almost all came from underclassmen.
The most significant came just before the halftime break, when the Vanguards tied the score at 7-7 on a 28-yard pass from Garrett Gramm to Patrick Marzolino with 29 seconds left. On the ensuing kickoff, Canyon junior Trace Hobbs gave the Comanches an instant injection of momentum with a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to take the lead back.
“That was the play of the game,” Ogas said. “We hadn’t popped one all year and Trace hit a big one.”
Hobbs also recovered an El Modena fumble that stalled a promising drive with Canyon still clinging to a one-score lead early in the fourth quarter, sophomore Chris Tsirtsis intercepted two passes and junior Noah Faryniarz blocked a field goal in the first half.
Canyon quarterback Jason Harman turned Hobbs’ fumble recovery into points, to put the Comanches up 21-7, with a 1-yard sneak for a touchdown with 5:41 remaining, then after Tsirtsis’ second interception, broke off a 52-yard run for a score to seal the game with 4:36 left.
Harman had a game-high 148 yards on 18 carries. El Modena’s offense relied heavily on junior running back Kenneth Lamb, who had 147 yards rushing .
Contact the writer: jbalan@ocregister.com
