FALLBROOKFALLBROOK — Returning to his old stomping grounds as a standout player, La Costa Canyon High football coach Sean Sovacool liked what he saw from his team.
The No. 8-ranked Mavericks scored three second-period touchdowns in a span of 2 minutes and 16 seconds and went on to post a 49-7 nonleague victory Friday night over Fallbrook. The win was the fourth in five games for La Costa Canyon.
“We had a lot of contributions from a lot of different players,” said Sovacool, who left his impact as an All-CIF linebacker at Fallbrook High, helping to lead the Warriors to the 2000 CIF Division I championship under coach Randy Blankenship.
“A lot of blood, sweat and tears were left on this field,” Sovacool said as he surveyed the scene prior to the game’s start.
Sophomore quarterback Quinn Roth threw scoring es on three consecutive attempts, sophomore running back Coby Herman scored two touchdowns receiving and rushing, and senior defensive end Ryan Stonebreaker recovered two fumbles to set up scores.
“Taking the ball away really helped kill their momentum,” Sovacool said.
“They’re just really good everywhere,” said Fallbrook coach Ross Johnson, whose team fell to 3-2 on the season. “We couldn’t get anything going against a very disciplined defense.”
The visitors scored on their first possession after a shanked punt left the Mavericks with a short field at the Warriors’ 39-yard line. Running back Andrew Maes carried on three of the five plays it took to score, which came on a 6-yard run off left tackle by Maes less than five minutes into the contest.
An interception by linebacker Jackson Christopherson later in the opening period set up the Warriors at the La Costa Canyon 30-yard line, and Fallbrook reached the 2-yard line before a fumble was recovered by Stonebreaker to squelch the Fallbrook threat.
The Mavericks proceeded to drive 94 yards on 10 plays capped by a 44-yard screen from Roth to Herman, who eluded at least six would-be tacklers en route to the end zone for a 14-0 La Costa Canyon lead.
“Once I broke the first tackle, I knew I had to score,” Herman said.
Roth tossed TD es on his next two attempts, connecting with Trevor Ladd for 12 yards and Bode Estabrook for 28 yards following Stonebreaker’s second fumble recovery of the night.
“I was just running hard to the ball,” said Stonebreaker. “We were all putting in the effort, and I was just there at the right time.”
A 26-yard punt return by Paco Martinez led to a 13-yard scoring run by Herman with 2:48 before halftime as the Mavs assumed a 35-0 lead at the break. Martinez added a 64-yard punt return for a touchdown five minutes into the third period as La Costa Canyon built its lead to 42-0.
The Warriors avoided a shutout when the team’s leading rusher, Chris Bausch, broke loose down the left sideline for a 68-yard TD run with 4:59 left in the third quarter. That, however, was the only time the Warriors reached the end zone against the Mavs’ defense.
Roth had just two ing attempts in the second half and finished 10-of-15 for 161 yards with three TDs and one interception. Fallbrook starting quarterback Evan Thomas sat out the second half after being sacked late in the first half.
“We don’t think it’s serious, but he was having a hard time getting his breath so we erred on the side of caution and held him out of the second half,” Johnson said of Thomas. “We need to take advantage of our bye week and get ready for the tough teams coming up in the Palomar League.”
Fallbrook, coming off its first winning season since 2015, will host San Marcos on Sept. 29 in the Palomar League opener.
La Costa Canyon, which last played at Fallbrook in Sovacool’s first year as coach in 2010, also has a bye next week and will host Poway in the Avocado League opener on Sept. 29.
Hoff is a freelance writer.
La Costa Canyon 49, Fallbrook 7
La Costa Canyon 7 28 14 0 — 49
Fallbrook 0 0 7 0 — 7
LCC — Maes 6 run (C. Luoto kick)
LCC — Herman 44 from Roth (C. Luoto kick)
LCC — Ladd 12 from Roth (C. Luoto kick)
LCC — Estabrook 28 from Roth (C. Luoto kick)
LCC — Herman 13 run (C. Luoto kick)
LCC — Martinez 64 punt return (C. Luoto kick)
F — Bausch 68 run (Dickey kick)
LCC — Marcucci 14 from Splavec (C. Luoto kick)
