ANAHEIM – Estancia’s combination of quarterback Connor Brown and wide receiver Konrad O’Daley led a potent offensive attack Thursday evening as the Eagles won their nonleague opener, 37-14, over Loara at Western High.
Brown, the reigning MVP of the Orange Coast League, completed 17 passes for 347 yards and three touchdowns. O’Daley caught eight passes for 221 yards, including TD receptions of 20, 61 and 53 yards.
The Eagles took a 7-0 lead after running back Jordan Balcazar capped an 11-play, 60-yard scoring drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 2:45 to play in the opening quarter.
Early in the second quarter, following a Saxons punt, Estancia made it 14-0 when Brown drilled a 20-yard TD pass to a wide-open O’Daley in the end zone.
Later in the quarter, D.J. Davis recovered a fumble for the Eagles (1-0) deep in Loara territory.
Estancia capitalized on the Saxons’ (0-1) turnover and increased its lead to 23-0 after Davis scored on a 1-yard run.
The Saxons offense failed to register a first down until its final series of the half. However, QB Boogie Augustine guided Loara on a 73-yard scoring drive late in the half. Augustine tossed a 23-yard TD pass to William Barreto to cut the lead to 23-6 at intermission.
Midway through the third quarter, Brown threw a 61-yard TD pass to O’Daley to increase its lead to 30-6. The duo connected again in the final quarter on a 53-yard TD strike.
Augustine passed for 125 yards and threw his second touchdown pass to Isaiah Labatos late in the third quarter.
The Eagles defense, led by senior end Jason Jones and sophomore defensive back Hunter Memsinger, forced four Saxons turnovers.
Game notes: Loara defensive back Kevin Islas was injured late in the first half making a tackle. The game was delayed for 20 minutes as Islas was treated by paramedics on the field and then taken to a taken by ambulance to a local hospital for further treatment. …
After a seven-year hiatus from the Orange County sidelines, former Kennedy coach Mitch Olson made his return official Thursday. Olson coached the Fighting Irish for 22 years before moving to Georgia seven years ago. He took over the Saxons head coaching job this past May.
