LAKE FOREST – For three quarters against visiting Trabuco Hills on Friday night, El Toro seemed intent on making every possible mistake on a football field.
Three interceptions, a lost fumble, a blocked punt, a blocked field goal, multiple turnovers on downs – they were all in the mix.
All that didn’t matter, because the Chargers played the final nine minutes of the game to near perfection.
Senior quarterback Trey Tinsley threw for 263 yards and three touchdowns in the fourth quarter alone to lead El Toro to a 34-33 comeback nonleague win.
The Chargers (4-1) trailed, 33-14, with 9:49 remaining, but Tinsley executed the quick-strike El Toro offense with precision and explosiveness in the final moments to score 20 unanswered points on long touchdown passes to Colin Kentros, Kaleb Fossum and Taylor Dodds.
Dodds caught the game-tying score, a 58-yard strike with 56 seconds remaining, and kicker Tyler Butcher added the extra point to give the Chargers their only lead of the game.
Tinsley finished with 544 yards and four touchdowns on 36-of-55 passing; the Chargers racked up 706 total yards and ran a staggering 98 plays.
“To be down the way we were, making mistakes all game – it was electric,” El Toro coach Robert Frith said. “It’s a rivalry game and anything is possible in a rivalry game. I’m at a loss for words, but our quarterback went in there and stepped up. For 31/2 quarters, all we did was shoot ourselves in the foot.”
Tinsley was the Chargers’ greatest weapon in the fourth quarter, but he played a significant part in putting his team in the hole. Two Tinsley interceptions – by Trabuco’s Brenden Schooler and Kevin McKinney – were returned for touchdowns, allowing the Mustangs (2-3) to open a 20-7 lead early in the third quarter.
“That was all on me,” Tinsley said. “I didn’t have a very good first half and even the third quarter. But we picked it up, and one thing this team has is heart.”
Trabuco thrived on the El Toro mistakes in the first half and even early into the fourth quarter, but could not put the game away on the ground. When the Mustangs tried to eat away at the clock with a double-digit lead, they couldn’t sustain drives. Trabuco finished with 53 yards rushing and was most effective when quarterback Jimmy Jacobs found Jacob Breeland, who finished with 114 yards.
“In the end, the key to the game was we couldn’t run the ball,” Trabuco coach Tony Henney said. “You give a good offense that many chances, eventually they’re going to burn you.”
Kentros finished with 10 catches for 173 yards, Fossum had 12 catches for 171 and Dodds had eight catches for 161.
Contact the writer: jbalan@ocregister.com
