MISSION VIEJO – Capistrano Valley took the opening kickoff for a quick score and went wire-to-wire while forcing four turnovers en route to an emphatic 45-7 nonleague victory over Kennedy on Friday night at Capistrano Valley High.
Trevor Wise wasted little time in making his mark as he displayed impressive speed while benefitting from great blocking by taking the opening kick 96 yards for a touchdown.
The Cougars found their offensive rhythm on their second drive after Wise picked off Kennedy QB Adrian Quezada. Capo Valley put together an 80-yard drive capped by Mitchell Nickovich’s 32-yard TD catch.
The Fighting Irish (3-2) lacked the presence of injured starter T.J. Williams, and as a result, their running game mustered just 123 yards.
Capo Valley looked as if it was going to find the end zone again early in the second quarter but after three straight incomplete passes, the Cougars had to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Adam Gordon field goal to pad their lead to 17-0.
Kennedy took advantage of excellent field position when the ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, giving the Fighting Irish the ball at their 35.
Kennedy used a 13-play drive that culminated when Quezada found tight end Derrick Deese for a 7-yard TD pass, trimming its deficit to 17-7. Deese finished with eight catches for 75 yards.
But after halftime, the Cougars (4-1) created a turnover, Alex Bale recovering a fumble at the Kennedy 3-yard line. Jordan Bocko punched the ball into the end zone on the next play, making the score 24-7.
Big plays continued to be the theme of the second half.
Gavin Pruett found Brandon Lanham and Tyler Waggoner on touchdown passes of of 43 yards and 73 yards, respectively.
Pruett finished with 264 passing yards and four touchdowns.