Second-half surge sends Costa Mesa football over Saddleback
Costa Mesa High had its homecoming game on Friday night, and Riley Weinstein, the Mustangs’ standout wide receiver, had been nominated to the homecoming court.
Flattering as that may be, Weinstein had other business to attend to. He did not take part in the festivities at halftime, but he still had reason to celebrate at the end of the night.
Weinstein scored the first defensive touchdown of his career on a 25-yard interception return in the fourth quarter, helping Costa Mesa put Saddleback away in his team’s 28-7 win at home.
Costa Mesa (3-3, 1-1 in the Orange Coast League) scored three touchdowns in a 92-second span between the end of the third and the start of the fourth quarters.
Weinstein, who towers over the competition at 6-foot-9, lined up at defensive end before capping the Mustangs’ scoring outburst.
“I didn’t even think I was going to get it,” Weinstein said. “I just jumped up, and there it was. I was just sprinting full speed, ready to sack him and then I saw him look up at me. It’s like his eyes widened or something. You don’t want to get hit.”
The Mustangs senior recalled seeing Saddleback quarterback Joey Wilson bring the ball back, and then he said he guessed where the ball was going to be thrown.
“I was telling everyone before the game, I was like, ‘I want one defensive touchdown,’” Weinstein said. “I don’t have one ever, and I was like, ‘I need one. I’m getting it this game.’”
“Everyone was so excited. It’s so much different than getting one at receiver. Don’t get me wrong, I love touchdowns from there, but a defensive one is just crazy— the adrenaline and everything.”
The game was too close for comfort for Costa Mesa, which led just 7-0 at halftime on a quarterback sneak by Garrett Richards.
Richards, otherwise, had trouble finding his receivers, and when he did, he was victimized by drops, including one on a surefire touchdown over the middle. The Mustangs signal-caller completed 32% of his passes, and he was three of 16 for 35 yards at the break.
Penalties also set the Mustangs back, as Costa Mesa compiled five personal fouls and 80 penalty yards in the first half.
“We’re going to watch the film and see what we can improve on — the personal fouls, the penalties,” Costa Mesa coach Gary Gonzalez said. “It was definitely a game where, as a coach, you cringe, but got the victory. We have to move forward, and that’s water under the bridge.”
Costa Mesa did strike through the air to double its lead late in the third quarter, as Brett McDonough cradled a pass from Richards in the middle of the end zone for a 5-yard score.
Diego Ramirez also had a 13-yard rushing touchdown to the left pylon for the Mustangs, before Saddleback (2-4, 0-3) ended the shutout bid with a 15-yard rushing score by Antonio Morales.
The Mustangs’ defense allowed the offense time to do just enough to put the game out of reach. Senior middle linebacker Fernando Guerrero had an interception and a fumble recovery.
“He showed up tonight,” Gonzalez said of Guerrero. “He had a great game, and he tackled well.”
Costa Mesa plays host to Santa Ana (5-2, 3-0) on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m.
Orange Coast League
Costa Mesa 28, Saddleback 7
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Saddleback 0 – 0 – 0 – 7 — 7
Costa Mesa 0 – 7 – 7 – 14 — 28
FIRST QUARTER
None.
SECOND QUARTER
CM — Richards 1 run (Smithlin kick), 6:13.
THIRD QUARTER
CM — McDonough 5 pass from Richards (Smithlin kick), 0:44.
FOURTH QUARTER
CM — Ramirez 13 run (Smithlin kick), 11:32.
CM — Weinstein 25 interception return (Smithlin kick), 11:12.
S — Morales 15 run (kick), 7:58.
INDIVIDUAL RUSHING
S — Morales, 16-80, 1 TD.
CM — Richards, 9-24, 1 TD.
INDIVIDUAL PASSING
S — Wilson, 7-16-2, 28.
CM — Richards, 8-25-0, 80, 1 TD.
INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING
S — Lemon, 3-23.
CM — McDonough, 5-45, 1 TD.
::
Support our sports coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.
For more sports stories, visit latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/sports or follow us on Twitter @DailyPilotSport.
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.
