By Brian Kaiserman
Copy Editor
In their first Bay League game of the season the Mustangs came up well short against Palos Verdes, losing on their home turf by a final score of 42-18.
The game took place in front of a packed crowd on Friday night at Waller Stadium. Unfortunately for the home fans, Costa was outplayed in all phases of the game, leading to a 42-18 Sea Kings victory.
“We struggled getting through their offensive line for most of the game,” senior linebacker Koda Thormodsgaard said. “This allowed them to have a lot of success running the football against us.”
Palos Verdes began the first quarter on fire offensively. The Sea Kings went two for two on touchdown drives using a dominant rushing attack to build an early 14-0 lead after the first quarter.
“We got off to a slow start which caused us to play from behind all game,” Thormodsgaard said. “We need to be able to make more stops on defense.”
The Mustangs managed to get on the scoreboard in the second quarter with a long touchdown pass from senior quarterback Nick Carpino to sophomore Brody Mckinnon. However, the Mustangs defense continued to struggle, as the Sea Kings increased their lead to a 28-6 margin at the half.
“We weren’t able to do much on offense in the first half since we only had three full drives,” senior quarterback Nick Carpino said.
In the second half the Mustang offense was able to put together two scoring drives, but once again it was the defense that let them down. Palos Verdes added two more scores of their own and defeated Costa by a final score of 42-18. The Mustang defense has now allowed over 40 points in three straight games.
“Our team needs to improve on our tackling and defending the run,” Thormodsgaard said.
After a third consecutive loss, the Mustangs now stand at a record of 2-4 overall, with an 0-1 mark in Bay League. They will be looking to bounce back next Friday when they take on Peninsula on the road.
“We need to go on a run so we will still have a chance to win Bay League and make the playoffs,” Carpino said.
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