St. Margaret's leaves no doubts with rout
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO - With the Academy League title on the line, St. Margaret’s quickly and emphatically reminded visiting Sage Hill that the Tartans are still the league’s unquestioned standard of excellence.
Senior John Murayama rushed for 133 yards and four touchdowns, while the Tartans defense forced four turnovers and held the Lightning to 1 yard of total offense in a 70-0 rout Friday night at St. Margaret’s High.
The Tartans (9-1, 3-0) are now a perfect 8-0 all-time against Sage Hill and are 52-1 in their past 53 games.
“I feel the kids were highly motivated and focused on our own game tonight,” Tartans coach Harry Welch said.
St. Margaret’s is expected to earn a No. 1 seed in the CIF-SS East Valley Division playoffs, which begin next week. The playoff seeding will be officially announced Sunday afternoon.
It was a quick start for the Tartans, who took the opening kickoff 70 yards in seven plays, taking a 7-0 lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by senior quarterback Brennan Smith.
After stopping the Lightning (7-3, 2-1) in three plays on their opening possession, St. Margaret’s used its special teams to increase the lead, as junior Mike Schmall blocked and recovered a Lightning punt in the end zone to make it 14-0.
St. Margaret’s continued to add to the lead in the second quarter, as Murayama scored on touchdown runs of 8, 12, and 2 yards, while Smith added an 8-yard scoring run. The Tartans led, 49-0, at intermission.
