Trabuco Hills bounces back

MISSION VIEJO - If there's anything to be learned from a 55-point shellacking, Trabuco Hills learned it, and learned it fast.

After getting thumped by No. 1 Santa Margarita last week, the 15th-ranked Mustangs (3-1) bounced back in a big way with a 35-14 nonleague victory over visiting Huntington Beach on Thursday night.

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"It was huge for us," Trabuco Hills coach Scott Orloff said of putting last week's game behind them. "One of the things about this team's character is its ability to persevere. When things get tough, we have to be able to bounce back and the kids did that tonight."

Mustangs quarterback Nathan Perry compiled 259 yards of total offense (193 passing, 66 rushing) and a pair of touchdowns to lead an offense that saw 10 different players touch the ball.

"It's really important for Nate to get going," Orloff said. "If Nate can clean up his reads, he's going to complete a lot of balls. That, and he has the ability and talent to run the ball, too."

Trabuco Hills halfback J.T. Land carried the ball eight times for 91 yards and two scores, and Jordan Hettinger added 62 yards rushing as part of the hosts' 120-plus yard advantage on the ground.

Thanks to two touchdowns in the third quarter — a 1-yard TD run by Chris Reck and a 62-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Cole Breeland — the Mustangs extended a 14-point halftime lead to put the game out of reach.

"We had a couple breakdowns in the second half, but all in all, we played well defensively," Orloff said. "We'll build on this for next week."

After receiving the opening kickoff, Trabuco Hills sustained a 15-play, 65-yard drive that included a 2-yard TD run on fourth-and-goal by Land that gave the hosts the early lead.

Still leading 7-0 late in the second quarter, Perry turned a quarterback option on second-and-long into a 75-yard TD run for the second score of the game.

Quarterback Kai Ross had 223 yards of total offense and a pair of passing touchdowns for No. 18 Huntington Beach.