Muhammad carries Cypress

ANAHEIM-Cypress got off to an uncustomary slow start Friday night, but once the Centurions got rolling, they weren’t going to be stopped.

Akeelie Muhammad rushed for 288 yards and five touchdowns, and Zack Ortiz passed for two scores and ran for another as Cypress used a 28-point second quarter to overwhelm visiting Loara, 55-13, in an Empire League game at Western High.

“We played poorly in the first quarter and (Loara) played well,” Cypress coach Ray Fenton said. “It was nice to see us overcome some adversity.”

After turning the ball over and punting on two of its first three possessions, Cypress (6-1, 2-0) closed the half with four consecutive drives ending in touchdowns to stifle Loara (4-3, 0-2). Muhammad, who had a 39-yard touchdown in the first quarter, scored on runs of 5 and 6 yards. The senior running back had 218 yards rushing at the half, adding a 5-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Ortiz and Jared Cohen also connected on touchdown passes of 15 and 40 yards.

“That was something we wanted to emphasize this week,” Fenton said of the passing game. “I thought we called a good game offensively.”