By: Sophia Vaughn
Despite a valiant effort, Mira Costa was unable to dethrone the Palos Verdes Sea Kings, losing 34-9.
Costa went up against Palos Verdes at Palos Verdes on Oct. 4 at 3 p.m. in the first Bay League Match of the season. The game was challenging for Costa, who went up against the Sea Kings, who have been named Bay League Champions for the past eight consecutive seasons. Difficult referees and a strong Palos Verdes fan base, who had come out to support at their homecoming game, only made the matchup more challenging for the Mustangs.
“I felt as though PV was not a physical team that was going to be one of our easier games,” senior offensive lineman Diego Osterling- Tabatabaian said.
The first half started off strong for the Mustangs, who managed to drive the ball twice into field goal range, where junior kicker Thomas Southey put up two field goals to put six points on the board for Costa. However, the dynamic Palos Verdes offense proved to be a challenge for the Mustangs, who answered with two touchdowns, making the score 13-6 at the half.
“Speaking from a offensive perspective, we tried to prevent leakage on our line during the passing game, but it was difficult, “ Osterling Tabatabaian said.
The second half was a struggle for Costa, who once again fought hard against the powerhouse Palos Verdes offense. However, senior quarterback Sam Whitney did manage to connect with junior wide receiver Danny Millea, who was under tight coverage, for the first Costa touchdown of the afternoon. Unfortunately, the Palos Verdes defense also challenged Costa, forcing five turnovers throughout the game. Costa continued to fight throughout the second half, with senior wide receiver Kian Towfighi and Millea gaining pass play yardage for the Mustangs, but it was not enough to topple the Sea Kings, and Costa lost, 32-11.
“I believe our team did well, but overall there were also too many mistakes to be able to recover from, “ Osterling Tabatabaian said.
The Mustangs, now 3-3 overall and 0-1 in Bay League, will go up against Peninsula High School at Waller Stadium on Oct. 11 at Waller Stadium. The Mustangs hope to recover this week’s loss and take home their first Bay League victory next week.
“Hopefully we improve the smaller mistakes we made since it was mostly just mistakes that we made that Palos Verdes was able to capitalize on, “ Osterling Tabatabaian said.
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