Thursday night lights didn’t shine any brighter on the Newport Harbor football team as the Sailors lost for the fourth straight week, a 50-14 setback to the Edison Chargers in the Sunset League opener for both teams. Harbor falls to 1-5 on the season and 0-1 in league play.
The post-mortem reads similar to the Sailors previous four losses. A decent but exhausting defensive effort was offset by a rough start on offense that led to a couple of quick scores as Edison built an early, insurmountable lead.
The talented Chargers squad (4-2, 1-0) opened with a 13-play, 82-yard drive mostly on the ground that culminated in a 13-yard touchdown run. By contrast, the Sailors were shoved backwards 17-yards in just two plays on their first possession, resulting in an Edison safety. Quarterback Nick Kim was sacked for a 5-yard loss on the first play, then couldn’t get a handle in a high snap that he recovered in the end zone for the safety and a 9-0 Edison lead. It’s the third time Harbor has coughed up a first quarter safety this season.
The Chargers piled on in its ensuing possession, needing just two plays to cover half the field with a 35-yard pass completion, then a spectacular, falling-backward one-handed 15-yard grab by Tyler Hampton in the end zone stretching the lead to 16-0.
“We had the bad snap, we spotted them nine points. Then we kicked it back to them and you can’t give a good football team like Edison good field position. They make you pay for it,” reflected Harbor head coach Peter Lofthouse.
The Sailors caught some wind toward the end of the first quarter after defensive lineman Alexe Pappageorge recovered a fumble at the Edison 41 yard line. Kashton Henjum then hauled in a 28-yard pass from Kim to ignite a six-play drive to paydirt. Carson de Avila scored on a 1-yard quarterback keeper to make it 16-7 early in the second quarter but that’s as close as the Sailors would get.
Chargers quarterback Parker Awad connected with receiver Nico Brown for two more touchdowns before half and another in the fourth quarter. Runningback Troy Fletcher scored twice for the Chargers. With Kim sidelined due to a possible concussion in the third quarter, senior AJ Guitron-Moore took over at quarterback for the Sailors and sparked some offensive life for the second straight week.
Guitron-Moore moved the team well and found Henjum for a 20-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Henjum’s individual effort on the come-back grab at the goal line and an earlier Duke Starnes’ juggling one-handed grab for a 20-yard reception were Harbor’s offensive highlight of the night.
“In the second half we found a little bit more of a rhythm,” Lofthouse said, indicating Guitron-Moore figures to get more playing time. “AJ came in and did a great job running the offense, making some good throws and managing the game for us. There’s definitely something there to build off of.”
Kim finished the night 11 of 20 passing for 91 yards. Guitron-Moore completed six of 19 passes for 47 yards and a touchdown. Henjum had 7 receptions for 86 yards and a score. Josiah Lamrque caught five passes for 26 yards and Payton Irving led the Sailors in rushing with 51 yards on 11 carries.
“We’re definitely frustrated because we know we have a good team and have a lot of talent,” Lofthouse said, adding a nod to the worthy opponent. “Edison is one of the best teams in the county. They’re a legitimate powerhouse team that’s going to make a run for the Sunset League title this year.”
The Sailors head straight back to Cap Sheue Field in Huntington Beach next Friday night to take on Fountain Valley in the second week of Sunset League action. Kickoff is set for 7:00 pm.
– Matt Morrison