Yorba Linda Football leads Villa Park in battle for Crestview League powers – Orange County Register

YORBA LINDA – In recent years, Villa Park or Yorba Linda has won the Crestview League football championship.

Yorba Linda took a big step toward league champions this year with a 31-13 win over Villa Park on a foggy Friday night at Yorba Linda High.

It was the start of the league for both of them. Yorba Linda, No. 8 in Orange County’s top 25, is 8-0 overall. No. 17 Villa Park is 3-5.

Yorba Linda went 3-0 and 10-1 overall in the Crestview League last season. Villa Park were the league champions in the 2020 season, which was postponed to spring 2021 due to COVID-19. Yorba Linda was the 2019 league champion, Villa Park was the 2018 and 17 league champion.

Yorba Linda senior linebacker Wyatt Mosier recovered from a Clark Samson-forced fumble at the Mustangs 2-yard line with 7:15 in the game and Yorba Linda with a 24-13 lead.

From there, Yorba Linda built up a time-consuming 11-play 98-yard drive that ended on a 5-yard touchdown run by William Saucedo with 1:12 left.

Mosier had an interception with 11 seconds remaining. Mosier, an All-Orange County first-team pick at linebacker last season, came into the game with 270 career tackles, three fewer than the school record. He broke the record in the first half.

“Our boys persevered and played games when it was necessary,” said Mosier. “Forced a few turnovers and that was a big part of the key to succeeding in our win tonight.”

Another of those turnovers was an interception by the Mustangs’ Jason Escovar in the Yorba Linda 1, which ended Villa Park’s first possession of the second half.

Yorba Linda scored in possession to open the game. A 44-yard pass from quarterback Reyn Beal to Moiser put the Mustangs in the Villa Park 2. On the next play, William Saucedo hit a run to put Yorba Linda 7-0 up.

Jayden Flaig’s 24-yard field goal took the lead to 10-0. Beal threw a deep ball to JJ Conrad, which Conrad ran over his shoulder as he crossed the goal line to lead 1:58 in the first quarter for a 17-0 lead.

Villa Park put together a 14-play drive for 78 yards that ended with a 1-yard sneak from quarterback Nate Lewis that cut the Spartans deficit to 17-7.

Yorba Linda reacted quickly. On the Mustangs’ first straight game after the scrimmage, Beal threw a short right pass to Dylan Gardner, who sped down the right touchline before cutting inside to hit a tackler en route to a 75-yard scoring play and a 24 -7 lead to dodge.