Mira Costa’s football team has played like this before. On Friday night, the Mustangs started the game very poorly, losing two fumbles in the red zone on the first two possessions. But 14 unanswered points to start the second half got the momentum the team needed, as the Mustangs won on homecoming night 42-28 against the Peninsula Panthers.
Many games have started this way for the Mira Costa this season. Against West, they went into halftime tied and came out firing and ended up winning the game.
The win moves the Mustangs to a respectable five wins and three loses on the season and a 2-1 record in the Bay League that keeps the team in the playoff race. Peninsula drops to 2-6 over all and 1-2 in league.
The Mustangs stuck to their run game once again, utilizing a variety of players in the game, including Jack Hadley who scored a second half touchdown after being crowned Homecoming King at halftime.
“It felt pretty awesome to be able to have such a great night, and do two things that are pretty darn cool,” Hadley said.
Hadley’s scoring play was unusual to say the least. In the wildcat formation, the Mustangs used Raphael Lawson-Gale as a decoy and Hadley sprinted around the opposite side for a 30 yard rushing touchdown, putting the Mustangs up 28-14 near the end of the third quarter.
Lawson-Gale once again led Mira Costa’s running attack with 113 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries. Josh Qerbash added 81 rushing yards on nine carries while scoring two touchdowns and Sebastian Franck-Love gained 84 yards and a touchdown on only six carries.
“I just went out there and ran the ball,” Querbash said. “The offensive line did very well. I give them a lot of credit.”
After trailing 14-7 at halftime, Mira Costa’s comeback was highlighted by a 51-yard touchdown run by Lawson-Gale to start the fourth quarter, putting the Mustangs up for good 35-14.
Mira Costa’s running game accounted for 428 of the 468 total yards gained against Peninsula.
“I loved the second half and especially that explosion in the third quarter,” Mustang head coach Don Morrow said. “I guess that’s the goal for us as coaches is to try to create that third quarter mentality somehow, I don’t know how to do that at the beginning.”
Morrow was trying to find answers to discipline his team better to prevent turnovers at the beginning of games.
“It’s a two-game season,” Morrow said. “We got Leuzinger next week, who has been struggling, but so was Peninsula and they gave us a hell of a game tonight.”
Leuzinger (1-7, 0-3) is coming off a 45-26 loss to visiting Redondo which will host Mira Costa in the regular season finale on Friday, Nov. 2.
