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High School Football: Edison captures Sunset League title

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HUNTINGTON BEACH — Edison left little doubt Friday as to who would reign as Sunset League football champion in 2012.

In a game whose outcome would have a direct bearing on the league race, the host Chargers sewed up an outright title for the second consecutive year by controlling Huntington Beach, 34-0, at Cap Sheue Field.

Edison, the top-ranked team in the CIF Southern Section Southwest Division, has, indeed, controlled the Sunset League the past two years. Friday’s win capped a second-straight 5-0 league finish and put the Chargers’ league win streak at 10. The title was their seventh in the last eight years, and the program’s 18th overall.

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The Chargers are 9-1 overall and have won six straight.

“To be league champs again, well, it can’t get better than that,” Edison Coach Dave White said. “If you had told me that the score tonight would be 34-0, I would have said, ‘no way.’ Huntington has been playing really well and they, too, were playing for a league championship. I just thought our guys did a real good job tonight.”

Sixth-ranked Huntington (5-5, 3-2), which would have gained a share of the league title with a victory Friday, came into the game on a roll, having won four of its previous five games. The outcome left the Oilers with sole possession of third place which gave them the league’s final automatic playoff berth.

Ninth-ranked Newport Harbor wrapped up second place Thursday with an overtime victory over eighth-ranked Los Alamitos.

The CIF Southern Section football playoff pairings will be released Sunday.

“I thought they were more physical than us,” Huntington Beach Coach Eric Lo said of the Chargers. “The second thing, is that any time a play needed to be made, we couldn’t come up with one. Our defense didn’t play well on the ball tonight.

“I just told the kids after the game, that we can’t hang our heads. We have to learn from this, and move on. We now have to turn our focus on the [CIF] playoffs.”

Edison’s defense got its fifth shutout of the season, which is a new school record. In league play, the unit surrendered only 17 points. Huntington was only able to muster 56 yards of offense in the first half, and the Oilers were held to just one first down in the second half. Edison senior defensive end Derek Baljeu had four sacks in the game including three in the opening half.

The Chargers also have held three other opponents to a touchdown or less.

“Our defense was unbelievable tonight and played lights out,” White said. “They really controlled the line of scrimmage and really didn’t give Huntington anything. Huntington has a very good offense, and we were able to contain them.”

The game started ominously for Edison when Dylan Luther fumbled a punt after the opening possession of the game. Huntington recovered at the Edison 46-yard line, but a holding call on first down against the Oilers, backed them up and they were forced to punt again.

Three, long pass plays by quarterback Aleksander Torgersen, set up three Edison scoring drives. The first came on an 89-yard play to senior receiver Trevor Borkowski midway through the first quarter. Torgersen was being pursued around right end when he found Borkowski behind the Huntington secondary. Borkowski made the reception at the Huntington 40 and raced toward the end zone before being dragged down at the one for an 89-yard gain. On the next play, senior running back Marquis Ross ran in for the score.

Edison scored on its final three possessions of the first half. The first score game on a 37-yard field goal by Hunter Kelley that made it 10-0 one play into the second quarter. An interception by senior linebacker Elijah Herrera gave the Chargers the ball back at the Huntington 47. Seven plays later, Borkowski grabbed a 15-yard pass that was deflected in the end zone for second TD reception from Torgersen.

Kelley connected on a 29-yard field goal with 36 seconds left in the half to bring the score to 20-0.

Edison extended its lead to 27-0 with 5:16 left in the third quarter when Torgersen scored on a one-yard keeper. Earlier in the drive, he teamed with junior receiver Jeremy Maxwell on a 48-yard pass play that put the ball at the Huntington eight.

Torgersen and Borkowski hooked up again on Edison’s final scoring drive of the game, this time, on a 61-yard pass play in the fourth quarter. It set up another Torgersen score on a four-yard keeper with 6:42 remaining.

Torgersen threw for 261 yards and Borkowski had 192 yards receiving.

Edison, which has been ranked No. 1 in the Southwest Division throughout much of the season, figures to get the divisions’ top seed when the playoff pairings are announced Sunday.

“I’m proud of our kids and what they’ve achieved,” White said. “We’re going to enjoy this win tonight for a bit, and then get ready for the playoffs.”

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Friday scoreboard

Fountain Valley 31, Marina 13: Senior quarterback Chris d’Entremont threw three touchdown passes to lead the Barons, who took fifth place in the Sunset League with the win at Marina at Westminster High. Senior back Eli Cabaccang ran for one score and caught a TD pass from junior quarterback Austin Sojka for the Vikings.

Fountain Valley finished the year 4-6 overall and 1-4 in league. Marina, which hasn’t won a league game in seven years, closes its campaign 3-7 and 0-5.

Loara 28, Ocean View 17: Quarterback Dallas Borge threw a touchdown pass to Reo Washington and also ran for a score, but Ocean View (4-6, 2-3) was upended by the Saxons (4-6, 2-3) in a Golden West League finale at Glover Stadium in Anaheim. The loss cost the Seahawks a bid to the CIF Southern Section Southern Division playoffs.

Brethren Christian 21, Crean Lutheran 7: On the final night of Academy League play, Brethren Christian sewed up the league’s second and final automatic playoff bid by knocking off the host Saints (5-5, 1-2).

Jared Fuga rushed for 183 yards and three touchdowns as the Warriors finished 2-1 and in second place in league, 6-4 overall, and advanced to the CIF Southern Section East Valley Division playoffs.

CIF-SS playoffs

Automatic CIF Southern Section playoff qualifiers: Edison (Sunset League No. 1, Southwest Division); Huntington Beach (Sunset League No. 3, Southwest Division); Brethren Christian (Academy League No. 2, East Valley Division).

The prep football brackets will be released Sunday by the CIF Southern Section office in Los Alamitos. First-round games will be played at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 9. Divisional quarterfinals are Nov. 16 and semifinals are Nov. 23. For local teams in the playoffs, the following dates for championship games have been set: Southwest Division (Nov. 30, Angel Stadium); East Valley Division (Nov. 30, TBA).

The CIF State Bowl Championships (Divisions I, II, III, Small Schools) are Dec. 14-15 at The Home Depot Center in Carson.

michael.sciacca@latimes.com

Twitter: @MikeSciacca

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