YORBA LINDA – After being shut down in the first half, Brea Olinda regrouped and stormed back in the second half to earn a 24-20 nonleague victory over Yorba Linda on Thursday at Yorba Linda High.
Wildcats running backs Billy Hanley and Michael Martinson combined to rush for 226 yards and three touchdowns to lead the second-half charge for Brea Olinda (3-3).
“We made some changes at halftime, but we stayed to our game plan,” said Hanley, who also had an interception and a fumble recovery. “This win shows our character.”
“The kids settled down in the second half and we started to execute and away we went,” said Brea Olinda coach Robb Perrance, whose team netted 57 yards in the first half.
The Wildcats defense forced four turnovers.
Brea Olinda struck quickly in the third quarter.
Martinson raced 79 yards for a touchdown in the opening minute of the half to tie the score at 7-7. Two plays following a Yorba Linda punt, Hanley broke free and outran the Mustangs secondary for a career-long 90-yard touchdown, propelling the Wildcats to a 14-7 lead.
After Brea Olinda increased its lead to 17-7, Mustangs quarterback Jake Gigliotti scored on a 31-yard run to trim the deficit to 17-14 with 1:49 left in the third quarter.
Hanley added a 3-yard scoring run early in the forth quarter to give the Wildcats a 24-14 edge. Gigliotti scored his third touchdown of the game with just over two minutes to play, but Yorba Linda (3-3) couldn’t get the ball back.
Gigiliotti led the Mustangs with 188 yards rushing and he scored three touchdowns. The senior gave Yorba Linda a 7-0 lead with a 2-yard run midway through the second quarter.
