MISSION VIEJO – What a difference a couple of weeks make.
After a sluggish start to the season, where the Mustangs were outscored 51-7 in losing its first two games, Trabuco Hills has turned things around and evened its record at 2-2 following a 31-3 rout over Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach) in a nonleague game at home Friday night.
“I think it’s just taken awhile for the kids to get used to a new offense, defense and the way we practice,” said first-year coach Tony Henney. “That’s a good team we beat tonight. I’m really pleased with our performance.”
Trabuco Hills led from start to finish, and seemed unstoppable early as it scored three touchdowns on its first three possessions.
Senior quarterback Jimmy Jacobs got things going for the Mustangs with a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
Junior tailback Chad Crosbie, who rushed for a career-best 158 yards in last week’s triumph over Fountain Valley, added two touchdowns on runs of 1 and 3 yards to give Trabuco Hills a 21-3 lead at halftime.
Mira Costa (1-2) scored on its first possession of the game on a 40-yard field goal by Graham Lipps. But that’s all it could muster against a Mustangs defense that has turned it on the last two weeks, allowing just 10 points in the last eight quarters.
“The first two games … our heads weren’t in it. The last two games we’ve started to play as a team,” said junior defensive lineman Austin Fine, who recorded 2 1/2 sacks and two tackles for loss.
The Mustangs recorded six sacks, including two by senior linebacker Blake Cuzzapoli, and held Mira Costa to 236 total yards. Junior defensive back Brenden Schooler had an interception.
“The defense was great,” Henney said. “We preach that we want runners and hitters out there, and today they ran and hit.”
Contact the writer: magarcia@ocregister.com
