Lopez lifts Garden Grove to victory

GARDEN GROVE - Jonathan Lopez scored  on three of his first five carries Friday as Garden Grove blanked Bolsa Grande,  35-0, in the Garden Grove League opener for both teams at Garden Grove High.

Sean Young opened the scoring, catching a 823-yard Robby Stevens  touchdown pass midway through the first quarter. Lopez added touchdown runs of  3 and 9 yards in the second quarter and a 10-yard scoring run in the third  quarter to give the Argonauts (6-0, 1-0) a 28-0 lead.

"The line was blocking well — they came out to play," Lopez said.

Stevens added a 12-yard scoring run midway through the fourth  quarter as Garden Grove rolled up 17 first downs and held the Matadors (3-3,  0-1) to just four in a defensive shutout.

"We had a defensive game plan that worked better than I thought  it would," Garden Grove  coach Ron Vander Sluis said. "(Bolsa Grande is) a good football team, and it  was important to get a win in the first league game, the first game that  counts."

Lopez gained 71 yards on 10 carries to lead all rushers as Garden Grove distributed  its offensive load among several players. Stevens completed 10 of his 20 pass  attempts for 121 yards.

Contact the writer: preps@ocregister.com