ORANGE – The press of a button – or failure to do so – was the difference between Villa Park winning and losing in Week 3. A player’s record for a class was submitted as paperwork but not electronically, rendering him ineligible – a fact that Coach Dusan Ancich didn’t find out until later.
That meant that Villa Park’s Sept. 18 win over Dana Hills was instead determined a forfeit.
The result was a hardened, more focused Spartans team in the week leading up to Friday’s game, Ancich said.
It showed as Villa Park led from start to finish in its 34-7 nonleague victory over crosstown rival El Modena at Fred Kelly Stadium.
On El Modena’s first drive, Austin Imbastari blocked a punt that Austin Zurbuchen picked up and ran 13 yards for the game’s first score.
The Spartans (2-2) led 21-0 at halftime. Ramon Chaves added a score on a 3-yard run – set up by a 61-yard Anthony Navarro pass to Lance Vecchio – and Navarro later found Christian Williams with a 3-yard pass for the third score with seconds remaining in the half.
Navarro completed 11 of 16 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns.
“Every week we get better at something,” said Ancich. “Our goal tonight was to throw the ball better and we did that. Our defense, our goal was to shut down the pass – they didn’t throw the ball, they had an injury but it was a good learning experience. The penalties we got to get better on, that’s just obvious.”
The Spartans weren’t flawless. They gave up more than 60 yards in penalties to El Modena’s offense in the game.
The Vanguards (2-2) were without injured quarterback Daniel Contreras. Sophomore backup Garrett Gramm took snaps to start before being replaced by running back Kenneth Lamb late in the first quarter.
Lamb kept the ball for the majority of the first half and was largely stifled by the Spartans defense. The Vanguards at one point drove to Villa Park’s 6-yard line, but a blocked field goal attempt ended the threat.
Gramm returned to run the offense in the second half. He found Patrick Marzolino on a 14-yard pass midway through the third quarter for the Vanguards first score, cutting the Spartans’ lead to 21-7.
Villa Park responded with two unanswered touchdowns, the first on a 46-yard run by Chaves and the final a 52-yard pass from Navarro to Vecchio.
Contact the writer: mhanlon@ocregister.com
