Fountain Valley pushes Poly to the limit

The Fountain Valley Barons lost a football game Friday night, but

still gained a huge victory in defeat.

Playing just four days after the death of starting offensive tackle

Scotty Lang, the Barons dedicated their first-round CIF Southern Section

Division I playoff game in memory of their fallen teammate, but their

heart-wrenching effort came up short in a 28-20 defeat to top-ranked Long

Beach Poly before 6,000 at Veterans Stadium.

Praise came from all angles following the game.

‘You have to give the Fountain Valley players all the credit in the

world,’ Long Beach Poly Coach Jerry Jaso said. ‘They played their hearts

out and gave us all we wanted tonight. Our hearts go out to them.’

The loss spelled the end of the season for Fountain Valley (6-5) - and

the end of a very trying week.

Last Monday, Lang, a 6-foot-6, 270 junior, went down during wind sprints

prior to the start of practice. He never regained consciousness, and was

pronounced dead an hour later.

An autopsy Tuesday could not determine the exact cause of Lang’s death.

‘What a roller coaster of a week this has been,’ Fountain Valley

Principal Gary Ernst said. ‘We didn’t play our best game tonight, but I’m

tremendously proud of our kids.’

So, too, was Baron Coach Eric Johnson.

‘I really thought we could have won this ballgame,’ he said. ‘I disagreed

with the perception that everyone had of us coming in here tonight like

lambs for the slaughter. If we’re healthy and mentally in the game, then

I think we could have won this. The only thing I can say about our team

is that everybody played with a lot of heart. I couldn’t have asked for

more.’

It was an amazing performance by the Barons when you consider they

suffered eight turnovers, and still lost to the Southland’s top-ranked

team by just eight points.

All four Poly touchdowns came as a result of Fountain Valley turnovers.

‘Scotty never game up in a game, and neither would we,’ Fountain Valley

fullback/defensive lineman Steven Fifita said of Lang, whose name Fifita

wore in place of his own on the back of his jersey. ‘I really felt

Scotty’s presence here tonight. He was with us, urging us on. I’m just

really proud of our team for never giving up.’

The Barons didn’t, not after the Jackrabbits (11-0) scored off a

pair of Fountain Valley fumbles to take a 14-0 lead after one quarter of

play.

Fifita fumbled the ball away at the Baron 11-yard line on Fountain

Valley’s third play from scrimmage. Three plays later, Herschel Dennis, a

sophomore running back and Poly’s leading rusher, scored on a one-yard

run for a 7-0 lead.

Dennis scored on another one-yard run with a minute left in the quarter

to cap a short march of 17 yards following a fumbled punt by the Barons’

Manuel Diaz.

With Fountain Valley’s emotional start quickly leading way to a potential

Poly blowout, the Barons, playing spirited ball, managed to mount a

stunning second quarter comeback behind a tenacious defense.

After quarterback Casey Clark was intercepted at the Poly 19-yard line

with 7:19 left until the half, the Barons defense, highlighted by an

11-yard quarterback sack by Kjell Johnson, son of the head coach forced

Poly to punt in four downs. Taking over at the Jackrabbit 34-yard line,

Nedal Abdelmuti completed a 29-yard touchdown pass to Robert Lodge on a

halfback option pass with 5:36 remaining.

The Baron defense came right back to stymie Poly in three plays and

forced another punt, setting Fountain Valley up at the Jackrabbit 49-yard

line. On first down, Clark hit Eddie Irwin for a 35-yard gain down to 14

and three plays later, rolling to his right, found Bryan Schenewerk at

the four, and the junior wide receiver went into the end zone.

Matt Hanson’s point after drew Fountain Valley even at 14-14 with 1:09

left in the half.

But the Barons weren’t finished.

With Poly stationed at midfield, Fountain Valley junior defensive back

Robert Chavez pounced on Poly quarterback Brandon Fasavalu’s fumble,

giving the Barons possession at the Poly 45-yard line with 31 seconds

left.

Clark then hit Schenewerk with a 17-yard pass to the 28, setting up

Hanson, who trotted on to the field and connected on a 38-yard field goal

on the final play of the half.

The kick, which sent the Fountain Valley crowd into a frenzy, gave the

Barons a 17-14 lead at the break.

‘We made such a nice comeback, and I was real proud of our guys for the

way they fought back after being down those two touchdowns,’ Johnson

said. ‘Turnovers hurt us, though, and unfortunately, they were a big

factor in the game.’

Poly took the opening kickoff and reached the Fountain Valley 48-yard

line but on third-and-five from there, Baron junior cornerback Chad

Triplett made a nice open field tackle of Fasavalu, stopping him a yard

short of a first down.

The Barons forced a punt, and started their first possession of the

second half at their own seven. On first down, however, Fifita fumbled

the ball back to the Jackrabbits, and Peter Lamond’s recovery set Poly up

at the Fountain Valley 13.

One play later, Dennis broke two tackles en route to a 13-yard touchdown

run for a 21-17 Poly lead.

Triplett again gave Fountain Valley the spark it needed by returning the

ensuing kickoff 50 yards, and a face mask penalty against Poly put the

Barons at the Jackrabbit 29. Their drive stalled at the nine-yard line,

however, but Hanson booted a 25-yard field goal to draw Fountain Valley

within 21-20 with 4:07 remaining in the third period.

Fountain Valley appeared to be moving in for the go-ahead score early in

the fourth quarter, reaching the Poly 25-yard line before a pair of

mistakes proved costly.

On second down, the Barons were guilty of holding, which moved the ball

back to the 40. Repeating the play, Clark threw an ill-advised screen in

the direction of Abdelmuti, but his pass was read perfectly by Poly

defensive back Chuck Jones, whose 13-yard return put Poly at the Fountain

Valley 42-yard line.

The Jackrabbits turned the turnover into another touchdown, with Dennis

scoring from three yards out.

It was the sophomore’s 21st touchdown of the season.

Fifita, playing his final game, led all rushers with 106 yards on 18

carries.

‘This is a game that I will always remember,’ he said. ‘It’s been a hard

week, but we wanted to play this one for Scotty. I know how proud he’d be

of us. This one, was for him.’