With two games under his belt, Redondo Union head football coach Matt Ballard has a pretty good idea of the talent his team possesses. This week, he’ll find out the amount of heart his Sea Hawk squad holds.
Redondo (1-1) suffered a heartbreaking loss Friday when visiting Santa Monica kicked a game-winning field goal with 48.7 seconds remaining in regulation to give the Vikings a 17-14 victory.
Although the Sea Hawks ran out of time in the end, the game was prolonged twice during the evening, the first delay coming after the final play of the first half when Redondo cornerback Eddie Fifita was injured after making a tackle.
The junior was taken to the hospital by ambulance after being treated on the field for 20 minutes. According to Ballard, Fifita was home and doing well Saturday morning.
Halfway through the third quarter, the stadium lights went out resulting in a 16-minute delay which seemed to slow Redondo’s momentum after it had taken the lead going into halftime.
The Sea Hawks recorded all of their points in the second quarter when quarterback Harrison Faecher hit his younger brother Preston with a 27-yard touchdown pass to tie the game and connected with Joe Ramos on a 39-yard touchdown strike to pull ahead 14-7.
Santa Monica, which entered the game ranked fourth in the CIF Southern Section Western Division, evened the score with a 79-yard scoring drive with 11:44 left in the game.
“We had opportunities to take the game away, but costly mistakes, penalties, poor executions and some Santa Monica big plays really hurt us and threw off any rhythm,” Ballard said. “We remind ourselves, ‘winners have to absorb losses;’ learn from them, and find the positive within. How we respond can strengthen our character and brotherhood, while giving us the opportunity to reveal the team we want to be.”
Senior running back Jamaal Perkins was named the Sea Hawk’s Offensive Player of the Game, senior defensive tackle Harry Whitson earned defensive Player of the Game honors and junior kicker/punter was selected as Special Teams Player of the Game.
Sophomore quarterback was named the Scout/Practice Player of the Week.
Redondo will look to rebound against Antelope Valley on Friday in a rare 4 p.m. game at Sea Hawk Bowl.
Antelope Valley (1-0), of the Golden League, routed visiting Boron 47-7 in its season opener.
The Antelopes return starting quarterback Cameron French (5-9, 175) who is a dual threat with the ball. French passed for 1,145 yards and 15 touchdowns last season and also led the team is rushing gaining 1,078 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 7.76 yards per carry.
Wide receiver Andrew Alegria (5-8, 170) averaged 16.3 yards per catch while hauling in six touchdowns in the 2012 campaign. Tight end Tracey Williams Jr. (5-11, 175) had 19 receptions for 211 yards.
On the other side of the ball, Alegria recorded a team high 115 tackles last season while Williams Jr. led the team with four interceptions.
