By Andrew Georgy
On Friday, the Fountain Valley High School (FVHS) varsity football team faced off against the Edison High School Chargers (3-2) at Lebard Stadium in Orange Coast College. Coming from three consecutive losses in the preseason, the Barons had hoped to improve their record but were unfortunately beaten 6-49, bringing their season record to 1-4.
Senior Lucas Alexander sustained attacks with lengthy throws and spontaneous jolts, while junior Cameron Farr and senior Nolan Oliviares aided with multiple fast breakouts that led to the Barons’ only touchdown.
The game ignited when the Barons kicked off the ball to start in the Chargers’ possession. Almost immediately, FVHS started strong, causing problems for the Chargers’ offense as Baron’s defense shielded up against the next plays by Edison.
Senior Brady Tomko made two crucial tackles in one minute that forced the Chargers into punting to the Barons’ thirty-yard line. With the ball now in possession of the Barons, runs by senior Luke Taylor and junior Cameron Farr failed to break the Charger’s compacted defense. The Barons were forced to kick off just a minute later.
On the defensive side, senior AC Trang started strong as the first quarter played out. Trang tackled an Edison player breaking away for the first touchdown of the game. The Chargers would find a crack in the Barons’ defense to score the game’s first touchdown at 8:00, and a successful point conversion made the score 0-7.
Senior Lucas Alexander restarted the play for the Barons and made a 14-yard run as they progressed to the Edison end zone. FVHS would continue to make little progress with runs by Nolan Olivares and Farr proving unprofitable. Alexander threw a pass, but Edison intercepted, giving them an unprecedented advantage.
The Chargers would score in the next play, as an impressive fake pass allowed the Chargers to push through and score another touchdown. The Chargers extended their lead to 0-15 following a two-point conversion.
Edison’s defense proved to be too troublesome for the Barons, and they forced FVHS to punt after their possession. The Chargers’ offense would overpower the Barons’ defense a few moments later as the Chargers pierced through to make another touchdown, ending the quarter with a score of 0-22.
The Barons started the second quarter with possession of the ball and immediately made a 25-yard gain, but Edison’s defense was rock solid. With possession of the ball from the Barons’ punt, the Chargers made a 43-yard run to score on the next play, but an incomplete point conversion increased the deficit to 0-28.
With Edison quickly regaining possession, tackles by junior Sam Garza and senior Kevin Quach helped slow down Edison’s offense. However, the Chargers’ offense proved to be too overwhelming as three downs after possession they scored another touchdown, bringing the score to 0-35 with 6:43 until the third quarter.
A similar pattern ensued in the next drive, with the Barons quickly punting after four plays. The Chargers rapidly kickstarted an attack only to be held by back tackles from Tomko and Trang. Yet, the Chargers’ offense finished the half with another touchdown and successful point conversion magnifying their lead to 0-42.
However, the Barons sought to regain momentum with a 10-possession drive. Runs by Garza and a catch by senior Cole Andrews helped the Barons maintain possession, with Alexander contributing as he rushed the ball on multiple occasions. Junior Nathan Oliviares pierced through Edison’s tough defense to score a hard-fought touchdown with 2:49 left in the third quarter. The Barons closed the deficit to 6-42 heading into the final quarter.
For the rest of the quarter, the Barons and Chargers traded possession of the ball, with FVHS successfully defending the Chargers’ offense and the Chargers holding back the Barons’ offense.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Edison returned to the offensive. With multiple tackles by juniors Ashton Le and Hayden Cutler, the Chargers’ offense finally found their tempo again to score the final touchdown of the game, finishing with a score of 6-49.
The Barons’ next effort will be the first league match and Homecoming Game home against Orange High School on Friday, Oct. 4 at 7:00 p.m.
Uy Pham and Jayden Nguyen contributed to this story.
