Newport Beach (Davidson Field).

The Newport Harbor football team fell short in the head coaching debut of Matt Burns (NHHS c/o 1994), falling 21-17 to St. Paul on Friday at Davidson Field.

The Sailors started out strong as their first offensive drive took almost half the quarter, as Jackson Stremick punched it in for a 18-yard touchdown run on a third and two to get the home team on the board.

After the Swordsmen went three and out, Newport Harbor went back to work offensively, getting a touchdown from senior quarterback Bode Stefano finding senior wide receiver Sammy Stremick in the endzone for the score.

The Sailors held the Swordmen to without a first down in the opening quarter and did a great job preventing big plays from the opposition.

The Sailors’ offense had a chance to perhaps add to their score, being faced with a fourth and two on the St. Paul 36 with two minutes left in the second quarter. But a near-mishandled snap led to the Sailors falling short of the first down marker.

St. Paul made Newport Harbor pay, as they used two screen passes to eventually get on the board on the second screen pass to only be down one score at halftime.

After the Sailors forced the Swordsmen to go three and out, they worked their way into the opponent’s red zone looking to add to their seven-point lead. But a fumble after Stefano appeared to try to get rid of the ball with defensive pressure coming turned into a scoop-and-score from 70 yards out, tying the game at 14-14.

Newport Harbor went three and out on their next drive and on St. Paul’s next drive, they appeared to get a big gain from running back Joseph Laferre. But Cade Fegel jarred the ball loose with Glenn Baransoki recovering.

The Sailors, however, settled for a 20-yard field goal from Daniel Rico, as the Swordsmen had a good defensive stand in the red zone. After the field, neither team could find points, with both teams’ defenses answering the call.

St. Paul started their drive at their own 29 with less than five minutes to play, but like most teams coached by Mike Moschetti, they love to pound the ball on the ground. That’s what they did, utilizing LaFerre to get a big gain and defensive tackle Aquarius Moore as a fullback.
Eventually, the Swordsman scored on a one-yard quarterback keeper from Gabriel Castaneda to take their first lead.

Newport Harbor had one final drive with a minute and 24 seconds remaining to get the win, but turned the ball over on downs, which led to the Swordsmen going into victory formation.
The Sailors (0-1) will look to earn Burns his first win as head coach as they play at La Habra on Friday at 7p.m.