Newport Harbor Hangs On for Victory Over Irvine

Andre Stewart rushed for two touchdowns and Newport Harbor’s defense blocked a field goal midway through the fourth quarter to push the Sailors past Irvine, 12-10, in a Sea View League game Friday night at Newport Harbor.

The Sailors (5-0-1, 1-0) blocked Jessob Reisbeck’s 35-yard field goal attempt with 4 minutes 52 seconds left. Newport Harbor then ran out the clock.

Stewart scored on a two-yard run midway through the third quarter to give the Sailors a 12-7 lead. He also scored on an 11-yard run in the second quarter.

“That was the biggest regular-season win since I’ve been here,” Newport Harbor Coach Jeff Brinkley said. “That was a great high school football game between two great teams. It’s not very often that you’ll have a high school football game with no turnovers.”

Irvine (3-2-1, 0-1) scored on its first possession, driving 45 yards in 10 plays. Godfrey Young scored on a two-yard run with 5:46 left in the first quarter.

The Vaqueros closed the gap to 12-10 with 11:06 left to play on a 32-yard field goal by Reisbeck.

Irvine Coach Terry Henigan was disappointed but impressed with his team’s defensive play.

“That’s a good football team that we played tonight, and I believe we held them to a season-low as far as points,” Henigan said. “But it’s tough to lose a close game like this.”