Two-minute drill

* Many have sung the praises of Costa Mesa senior linebacker-fullback

Junior Epenesa’s play, but Epenesa and a few of his teammates showed

they could actually sing before The Mustangs kicked off Friday

against nonleague visitor Santiago at Orange Coast College.

Epenesa, senior tailback Omar Ruiz, senior Javier Flores and

senior Mike Torrenueva, all in full football uniform, helped the

Costa Mesa choir perform the national anthem Friday.

Torrenueva, a backup quarterback, showed he can guide more than an

offense, by directing the choir through its rendition.

* Corona del Mar provided a variety of highlight plays Thursday

against Laguna Beach, but the one that brought the loudest roar of

approval was a hit junior cornerback David Del Fante put on Laguna

Beach tight end Brett O’Connor.

O’Connor was streaking down the right sideline, looking a pass

into his arms, when Del Fante put a crushing blow on him, jarring the

ball loose. Making the hit more impressive is Del Fante’s size

(5-foot-11, 163 pounds) compared to O’Connor (6-3, 235).

* Sailors Coach Jeff Brinkley has harped all season about

penalties, but in the biggest game of the season Newport Harbor was

flagged 15 times for 108 yards.

Brinkley’s main concern has been penalties before and after the

whistle. Of the 15 penalties Friday, nine came before or after the

whistle. Among those were four defensive encroachment penalties and

three offsides penalties on offense.

* The Mustangs’ 56-21 victory turned out to be a big night for the

Krikorian family. Senior Stacy Krikorian, a soccer and track and

field standout who has also played volleyball and is currently on the

cross country team, was named Homecoming Queen.

Later, junior defensive back Tony Krikorian made a diving

interception to end Santiago’s final possession.

* Costa Mesa’s 56-point performance was the 18th time the Mustangs

have topped the 50-point plateau, all coming since a 51-14 win over

Laguna Beach in the 1990 season.

Until then, Mesa had played 294 games without reaching 50. Since,

the Mustangs have done it 18 times in 137 games.

The 1992 Mustangs hold the record for most points in a game with

65, though a 63-0 win over La Quinta in 1999 represents the biggest

victory margin.

* The Mustangs’ big win was its fifth in its last five

regular-season meetings with a Garden Grove League opponent. In those

wins, the Mustangs have combined for a 244-27 scoring advantage.

* Estancia High junior Geo Macias had already proved his

versatility by playing receiver, cornerback, punting, kicking and

returning kicks for the Eagles. But he added a new wrinkle when the

right-footed standout improvised after fielding a low snap to get off

a left-footed punt Thursday night against Saddleback. The boot,

executed after he sidestepped an oncoming defender, covered 22 yards.

Macias, who kicked a career-long 33-yard field goal for Estancia’s

first points, showed what he could do with his preferred kicking

foot, booting a 55-yard punt early in the fourth quarter.

* Newport Harbor offensive guard Stephen Joslin, making his first

start of the season, left Friday’s game with a high ankle sprain with

2:23 remaining in the first half. Ellery Murphy and Mark Temple

filled in along the line.

* The Sailors were nearly shorted a down with just over five

minutes to go after an intentional grounding penalty.

The flag was thrown on first down, but when the Sailors lined up

for the ensuing play, the down marker read third down. After a short

gain, the officials signaled fourth down before Newport Harbor’s

sideline protested.

The officials corrected the error only after looking at the play

chart that Sailors backup quarterback Tom Jackson was keeping on the

sideline.

* Brinkley caused a bit of shock among the Newport Harbor faithful

when he had his offense line up on a fourth-and-inches play at the

Sailors 17-yard line three plays into the second quarter.

Quarterback Kasey Peters drew the defense offsides, giving Harbor

a first down. Brinkley said afterward that if Foothill had not been

penalized he would have called a timeout and re-evaluated the

situation.