Laguna Blanca’s 8-man football squad battled through heat and fatigue to pull off a win over visiting Condor League-foe Dunn on Saturday in a matchup of mascots that doesn’t come around too often — the Owls defeated the Earwigs 42-14.
“We really needed this to build up our confidence,” said Alex Harmer, who took the ACT tests all morning along with many teammates.
It was Founder’s Day at Laguna Blanca, and Luther Tarver-Burks put on a second-half show for the healthy crowd of alumni in attendance, scoring on a pair of dazzling runs that made him look like an 8-man version of Reggie Bush.
“I’m astonished every time he does it. He’s the fastest kid I’ve ever seen,” said Harmer, who severely dislocated his right ring finger late in the game, only to have it popped back into place by a trainer before heading back onto the field.
After a third-quarter Earwig touchdown that cut the Laguna lead to 20-14, Tarver-Burks turned on the jets for a 40-yard kickoff return that put the ball on the Dunn 38. He then took a screen pass from quarterback Connor Murphy and reversed field twice before turning upfield and taking it to the house for a touchdown with just under four minutes remaining.
Dunn went three-and-out and Tarver-Burks responded with another zig-zagging, highlight-reel effort that scored from 28 yards out. His touchdowns were 74 seconds apart.
“It just goes to show you what it does to have a real athlete like that in the 8-man game,” said coach Ray Robitaille.
Perhaps the biggest positive on the day for Laguna, however, was the play of Murphy, who threw five touchdowns to four different receivers. Robitaille said that the emergence of the passing game provides a new dimension to the offense that will be key for the Owls if they are to earn a berth in the postseason.
They will need to beat Ojai Valley next week and the finale against Thacher in order to prolong the season.
“That game is gonna be our whole season,” said Robitaille.
Saturday’s game was a test of endurance that the Owls had failed to pass last week against rival Cate, as Laguna Blanca lost a halftime lead and ended up on the wrong end of a 57-34 decision. Despite having fatigue and heat issues on the sideline throughout the second half, the Owls passed the test against the Earwigs.
We’ll have to see about passing those ACTs, however.
