ANAHEIM - Loara had a chance to put the game away in the fourth quarter. A turnover ended that opportunity.

Then, Magnolia had a chance to regain the lead in the fourth quarter. A turnover ended that opportunity.

A game of five lead changes and dramatic plays ended with Loara ahead at the end, as the Saxons beat Magnolia, 33-28, Thursday at Western High in the final nonleague game for both. (Full game stats.)

Loara will take a 4-1 record into its Empire League opener against Katella on Thursday at Glover Stadium. The Saxons finished 2-7 last year, and 0-10 in 2006.

Magnolia will be 2-3 when the Sentinels play their Orange League opener against Western on Thursday at Western.

Loara appeared about to extend that five-point margin with four minutes to go in the fourth quarter when slotback Robert Bautista was just two steps from the end zone on a run of 53 yards that would have produced points if it had been for 58 yards.

Bautista was caught from behind and fumbled, with Magnolia’s Jose Pineda making another of his several big plays as he recovered the ball at the Sentinels 5.

Magnolia then maneuvered up field, with a Robert Cruz run of 16 yards on fourth-and-4 sustaining the drive.

The Sentinels advanced as far as the Loara 33 in the final minute, but fumbled and Loara’s Jonathan Rangel recovered the ball with 30 seconds to go.

“This kind of game is not good for my heart,” Loara coach Dean Lappin said. “We had a chance to close out the game there (on Bautista’s run), but couldn’t do it.”

Cruz, who went into the game as the county’s second-leading rusher behind Fullerton’s Michael Allain, rushed for 197 yards on 26 carries. He scored on a 65-yard run and returned a kickoff 92 yards for another touchdown.

Cruz was averaging 10 yards a carry going into the game. On Thursday, he averaged 7.6 a carry and fell 17 yards shy of his 214 yards-per-game average, enough of a drop in both categories to please Lappin.

“I like the way we played on defense,” he said. “That guy (Cruz) is dangerous. You hit him, and just bounces off and keeps going.”

Loara’s Troy Lloyd had scored on a 30-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter to give the Saxons a 33-22 lead.

Cruz returned the ensuing kickoff for his 92-yard touchdown. A pass for two points was incomplete, leaving the score  33-28.
 
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Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com