REDONDO BEACH — The Redondo Union football team expected to be in a battle when they took the field Thursday against Huntington Beach.
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The Sea Hawks were in the game the whole way, limiting Huntington Bach senior quarterback and Ohio State commit Brady Edmunds to just 62 yards passing on 7 of 13 passing.
However, it was senior kick returner Dylin Bruce who led the way, returning two punts and a kickoff for touchdowns, in the Oilers’ 28-14 win in the nonleague contest.
Edmunds scored the Oilers’ only offensive touchdown on a 2-yard keeper in the second quarter.
“Little things hurt us tonight,” Redondo coach Keith Ellison said. “On our second drive we drove down the field and had a chance to score and we fumbled the ball. When we punted the ball we gave up two returns for touchdowns and later a kickoff return for a touchdown. We weren’t really as focused as we needed to be on the details and it hurt us.
“It’s a shame we wasted Rocky’s effort. We were able to run the ball the way we wanted to tonight against a very good team. We have to go back and fix our mistakes moving forward.”
Redondo junior running back Rocky Martinez, who rushed for 306 yards last week, went for 218 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries.
Huntington Beach forced Redondo into a quick three-and-out on the first possession of the game. Bruce, an Arizona State commit, fielded the punt at midfield and sprinted down the right sideline and went untouched for a 50-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead.
Redondo (3-1) looked like it would answer on the next drive. Martinez gained 51 yards on five carries to move the ball inside the Oilers’ 30. However, Malachi Brown fumbled on the next play ball and Huntington Beach recovered on its 31.
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The Oilers put together a 17-play, 69-yard drive, converting four fourth-down plays. Edmunds capped the drive by bulldozing his way into the end zone for a 2-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead with 10:25 left in half.
Redondo forced Huntington Beach to punt on the first possession of the second half. Redondo’s offense would finally reach the end zone on a 1-yard score from Martinez, to make 14-7 with 5:45 left in the third quarter.
Later, in the quarter, the Redondo offense was on the move, but on a third-and-11 play, quarterback Brady Grow went down and suffered an apparent leg injury. Grow eventually had to be helped off the field.
The offense would have to punt and again, Bruce added to his highlight reel. He fielded the ball on his own 10 and weaved his way through the defense and took off for the end zone and a 90-yard score.
“I seen green grass and I just go and scored some touchdowns,” he said. “I did whatever to help my team. I’ve never had a night like this. But they (Redondo) were a tough team their running back is tough and he runs hard. They put up a good fight, but my teammates and I stepped up and got the win.”
Despite trailing 21-7 and without their starting quarterback, the Sea Hawks kept fighting. Junior tight end Lawrence Suiaunoa replaced Grow and converted a 25-yard pass to Tyler Harper on a 3rd-and-10 from the Oilers 29. Three plays later Suiaunoa scored on a three-yard draw to get within one score, 21-14 with 7:24 left the game.
Bruce would put the game away, taking the kickoff 95 yards for his third return touchdown of the night.
“It was sad for Brady (getting hurt),” Suiaunoa said. “I wasn’t expecting to play (quarterback). I took a few reps at practice this week so I knew a couple of plays and was able to lead us to a touchdown. Our defense did amazing tonight and kept us in it. We’ve got to a better job of not putting the ball on the ground. These games build character and will help us moving forward.”
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