With loss of key player, Saints fight to heart-breaking loss

The Santa Monica Saints lost in the first seconds and in the last second of the football game last night.

On the first kickoff, Senior Rob Ashcraft was injured on the tackle. One of three key players, Rob never returned to the game.

Then with two seconds remaining at the end and 60 yards to score a touchdown to wrest the game from Ribet Academy, ticked-off Tex Hagoski was wrangled to the ground by a slew of Fighting Frogs. He had been virtually unstoppable. That’s what happens when he gets mad.

So Lighthouse Christian Academy lost a heart-breaking 44-42 to the crosstown rivals from Glassell Park, their third loss this season of 8-man football.

Then there were two.

The Saints have quilted together a credible team with initiates surrounding the team of three – Rob, Tex and quarterback Adrian Brizuela. But when Rob tackled on a kickoff return, he immediately moaned with pain in his knee.

With the loss of their 200-pound star, Lighthouse might have felt their hearts sink. Too many of the other 11 players were wimpy freshmen.

But instead of losing heart, however, they compensated for the lost man. Tex and Adrian played extra hard. Newbies Abraham Kennedy and Alex Cervantes assumed bigger roles.

At halftime, the Saints were tailing 20-30.

Into the third quarter, the Lighthouse was still losing, but in the fourth quarter, they stopped the Fighting Frogs and ran up-field to tip the game finally in their favor. Cervantes made some stunning receptions and a touchdown. Tex looked like a battering ram powering through players.

Dances with the Stars

Adrian proved his Latin blood with some defender-defying dancing to shashay homeward. He is now a candidate for Dancing With the Stars.

Abraham came up with big tackles to grind down the opponents.

With five minutes left, the Saints were winning 42-38. Smelling an unlikely victory, 60 Saints fans roared and thundered the aluminum bleachers of Daniels Field in San Pedro.

But the Frogs hadn’t lost their fight and battled back to score. Lighthouse ran three plays in 20 seconds and came up short of the winning touchdown. After coming so close to a win despite depleted resources, it was extra frustrating.

“That was the greatest fight I’ve ever seen out of you guys – down at half and came back and fought,” said Coach Justin Kayne. “That was phenomenal.”