Pacifica rolls behind Howard

GARDEN GROVE - The key to Saturday night’s contest between Pacifica and Costa Mesa was which team could establish the running game.

Pacifica ran for 142 yards and three touchdowns en route to a 21-6 victory over Costa Mesa at Bolsa Grande High.

Pacifica struck twice in the first quarter, led by Howard. Howard led the Mariners on a 65-yard opening drive, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Avery Watson.

On Pacifica’s next possession, Howard connected with wide receiver Matthew Seto on a 57-yard pass, putting the Mariners in scoring position with just seconds left in the opening period. Howard finished off the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run with 11 seconds left in the first.

Costa Mesa found itself struggling offensively early on. It was unable to convert two short yardage plays on fourth down in the first quarter, allowing Pacifica to take over on downs.

Howard’s near-perfect first quarter came to an end as Mustangs senior Markiece Traylor intercepted a Howard pass, returning it for 18 yards, putting Costa Mesa in the red zone. Quarterback Noah JeyaRajah capitalized on the good field position with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Traylor with 9 seconds to play in the first half.

Pacifica took a 14-6 lead into the break.

The Traylor touchdown would be the only points for Costa Mesa which failed to take advantage of couple scoring opportunities in the second half.

Watson closed out the scoring with a 5-yard touchdown run at the 4:27 mark of the fourth quarter.