Brea-Olinda Rolls to Win Behind Defense

Brea-Olinda High School got defensive Thursday night, recording four sacks, recovering a fumble on an attempted punt, intercepting a pass and finally staging a goal-line stand in a 21-7 win over Troy in Fullerton District Stadium.

In winning its third straight game, Brea showed two things: 1) It won’t live or die behind the passing of two-time all-league quarterback Chad Marlow; and 2) It has a formidable defense that just might be good enough to end Valencia’s six-year reign as Orange League champions.

Brea utilized two turnovers that led directly to touchdowns in the second quarter to take a 14-0 lead. Outside linebacker Lance Gasporra recovered a fumble on Troy’s 10-yard line and teammate Ed Stewart scored his first of two touchdowns.

A bad snap over the head of Troy punter Chad Hartford was recovered by Brea on Troy’s 30-yard line. This time, Stewart scored on a five-yard run and Troy never recovered.

Marlow passed for only 41 yards but Brea amassed 174 yards rushing. Stewart, who missed the season opener with a shoulder injury, gained 129 yards in 25 carries.

Troy (2-1) avoided a shutout when quarterback Greg Windle teamed with wide receiver Steve Friedrich on a 40-yard touchdown pass just before halftime. Windle rolled to his right and threw a desperation pass on the run that Friedrich somehow hauled in.

Windle completed 13 of 26 pass attempts for 192 yards but the left-hander was sacked four times and threw an interception. Windle also couldn’t move his team into the end zone following a first down at Brea’s two-yard line early in the third quarter that proved to be the turning point in the game.