PREP FOOTBALL : Pacific Coast League : Trabuco Hills Upsets Woodbridge

Trabuco Hills High School, well known for its offense, followed its defense to a league title and a bit of school history.

The Mustangs defeated Woodbridge, 17-13, to gain a share of the Pacific Coast League championship--they will share it with Woodbridge (9-1 overall, 4-1 in league play). The victory also means Trabuco Hills will go into the playoffs as the league’s No. 1 representative.

The league championship is the first in any varsity sport in the 4-year history of the school. It also ended Woodbridge’s 13-game winning streak, Orange County’s longest.

Trabuco Hills quarterback David Lowery summed up the feelings of the team after the game as he screeched, “Yeah!” until he was hoarse.

Lowery and wide receiver/running back Tim Manning were expected to be the key figures for Trabuco Hills (8-2, 4-1). Lowery came into the game having thrown for 2,028 yards and 16 touchdowns, Manning had caught 34 passes and scored 9 touchdowns.

They did play their parts. Manning scored the game’s first touchdown on a 15-yard run and threw a 12-yard option pass to James Aquirre for a second-quarter touchdown. Lowery completed 11 of 25 passes for 144 yards.

But the game was won by the Trabuco Hills defense, which limited Fred Schweer, Woodbridge’s exceptional quarterback, to an 11-of-23 effort for 93 yards. Consider that 5 of those completions came on a desperate Woodbridge drive late in the game and you have a good idea the job Trabuco Hills did on Schweer.

Trabuco Hills defenders spent an extended vacation in the pocket. Linebacker Matt Davis sacked Schweer twice. When they didn’t sack him, they were hitting him right after he threw.

Woodbridge Coach Rick Gibson acknowledged Trabuco Hills’ defense, but also acknowledged the fact that Schweer wasn’t getting a lot of help, hands-wise.

“We dropped a lot of passes out there,” Gibson said.

Schweer did score on a 2-yard run with 2:51 left in the first half, and the conversion kick tied the score at 7-7. The drive started on the Trabuco Hills 5 and was set up by Alex Zaldivar’s 28-yard interception return.

But Trabuco Hills came right back with a 7-play drive that covered 68 yards and concluded with Manning’s pass to Aquirre.

Matt Davis kicked a 26-yard field goal late in the third quarter to give the Mustangs a 17-7 lead.

Schweer and Woodbridge couldn’t get anything going until late in the game, when Damien Hartman recovered a Trabuco Hills fumble on the Trabuco Hills 36. Eight plays later, Mike Yurkovich scored from the 3. Troy Holmes’ conversion attempt was blocked, and the Warriors trailed, 17-13.