Fourth-ranked Servite shuts out Oceanside, washes away memory

OCEANSIDE, Calif. - The last time Servite (Anaheim, Calif.) football coach Troy Thomas led his team in the program's renowned "Hut Drill" after a game he was wearing a soaked rain slicker, up to his ankles in mud and probably wondering what the downpour just happened.

His team, brimming with confidence following truly impressive Trinity League and Pac-5 Southern Section titles and ranked No. 4 nationally, was just whitewashed 48-8 by a smaller and more prepared De La Salle squad in the December CIF Open Division Bowl championship at Carson's Home Depot Center.

On Thursday, dry and wry on a crisp, clear night near the Pacific Ocean, the skies had indeed cleared for Thomas and his renowned Friars' program which pulled off a convincing 20-0 win over San Diego's finest, the seven-time defending section champion and host Oceanside Pirates.

A pair of promising running backs, Charlie Etiaki and Andrew Moore rushed for touchdowns, spanking new kicker Connor Beavans booted a pair of short field goals and a sure-tackling, hard-hitting defense, led by BYU-bound linebacker Butch Pauu, responded to every considerable Oceanside challenge.

The result was a victory that gave Thomas a twinkle back in his smile and a skip in his step following last year's humbling season-ending defeat.

"That loss motivated us, but tonight wasn't a redemption thing," Thomas said. "We just try to get better every week. I'm proud of our guys. They worked really hard in the off-season and we'll see. We have a long way to go."

And it was a very long, stinging off-season to sit with that loss, said Pauu.

"We've been waiting nine months for this after that De La Salle game," he said. "When I told people (in the off-season) that I go to Servite a lot of them said, ‘oh you're that team that lost by 40.' Hey, I accept the fact they beat us fair and square. Rain or no rain, they still beat us.

"We just used that loss as a learning tool to all get better. We were on top of the world because we had won league, won the Pac-5 but when you get to state, there's another level you have to take it to. … We went in thinking we were going to beat them. But they are so well coached and they love what they do and they perfect what they do every single day."

That's what Thomas, staff and players came away with after that game. Specifically, Thomas said, the Friars focused on line play where the much smaller Spartans largely blew them off the ball.

"We'll watch the film and see if we improved in our technique up front," he said. "That's the biggest thing we wanted to do in the off-season and we've worked hard on it. So we'll see if it helped."

It certainly appeared so Thursday, especially on the defensive front where the Friars recorded five sacks against two young but talented Oceanside quarterbacks. It led to just 35 rushing yards on 26 carries.

BYU-commit Jherremya Leuta-Douyere had two of those sacks.

On the offensive front, Servite didn't exactly blow past a big and physical Pirates' line, but it did rush for 253 yards on 31 carries (8.1 yards per carry). Of those, 72 came on Etiaki's touchdown scamper in the second quarter and 35 more by Sean DeRosa set up a Beavans' 25-yard field goal right before the half to put Servite up 13-0.

A determined fourth-down, 3-yard touchdown run by Moore, a 6-foot, 180-pound sophomore, put the game away with 7:11 remaining. Etiaki finished with 115 yards on 12 carries.

"I think we have a couple of special running backs in our program (Etiaki and Moore) and all they need is experience," Thomas said. "We think they're going to be very good football players for us.

"As far as the defense, (Oceanside) obviously moved the ball on us, but we made plays when we needed to. We made stops."

Indeed, Oceanside four times moved inside Servite's 30 and four times they were denied. Conversely, Servite scored on all four of its red zone opportunities.

The big killer for Oceanside was an interception by Servite's Connor Hoffman at the Friars' 12 late in the third quarter.

Pauu, who had 11 tackles, many with big hits, recovered a fumble on Oceanside's first possession that set the tone and set up Beavans' first field goal.

"We were able to do well between the 20s, but inside there we didn't do well," said Oceanside coach John Carroll, a Servite assistant from 1980-83. "We need to find out why."

Oceanside junior quarterback Tofi Paopao, a 6-1, 200-pounder who threw for 2,372 yards and 20 touchdowns last year, split time with senior Ryan Lamb (6-4, 210), who completed 7 of 11.

Paopao put the blame on his shoulders and gave credit to the Friars, who last season ended Oceanside's 39-game win streak with a 31-7 victory.

Oceanside, which claims such football alums as former NFL greats Willie Buchanon and Junior Seau, committed six turnovers in that game last year but rebounded to win another section crown.

"(Servite) tackles very well and they are very physical," Paopao said. "We just weren't ready for this game mentally. Honestly I think our quarterbacks didn't make the right reads. We just need to look at film and get better.
 
"I have absolute confidence in our team. Even though we're young, I think we'll be great."

Pauu agrees and wasn't expecting the Friars to pull off the shutout.

"We knew (Oceanside) was well coached and well rounded and had great athletes," he said. "We just had to bring it all four quarters. The shutout was just icing on the cake."

And this one tasted much better than that muddy loss in December. Especially during the hut drill afterward.
 
"I just remember feeling very cold that night," he said. "Not because it was wet and cold outside, but because we were so upset inside with ourselves. This feels completely opposite. To get a win like this is just a great way to start the season."

Servite 20, Oceanside 0

Servite 3 10 0 7 – 20
Oceanside 0 0 0 0 - 0

First quarter
S – FG, Connor Beavans 30, 8:10

Second quarter
S – Charlie Etiaki 72 run (Beavans kick), 7:02
S – FG, Beavans 25, 14.4

Fourth quarter
S – Andrew Moore 3 run (Beavans kick), 7:11

STATISTICS

Rushing
S – Etiaki 12-115, Sean DeRosa 5-60, Moore 7-38, Cody Pittman 5-31, Neil Pauu 1-7, Domain Mora 1-2. Totals 31-253. O – Ryshaud Keegan 12-42, Thai Cottrell 6-33, Jayce Whittaker 1-6, William Gulley 1-1, Tofi Paopao 4-(-19), Ryan Lamb 2-(28). Totals 26-35.

Passing
S – Pittman 9-21-0-94. O – Paopao 11-13-0-94, Lamb 7-11-1-66, Keegan 0-1-0-0. Totals 18-25-1-160.

Receiving
S – Daniel Tejeda 3-35, Sam Hunt 2-18, Ainslie Johnson 2-11, DeRosa 1-15, Etiaki 1-15. O – Cottrell 6-43, T.K. Dodds 4-28, Whittaker 3-21, Donte Elliot 2-26, Chase Dariso 2-22, Keegan 1-9.

Total yards
Oceanside 347, Oceanside 195.