Orange Lutheran football downs Sierra Canyon, scoring 23 unanswered points in fourth quarter

The Lancers trailed 26-7 at halftime and 26-10 after three quarters before completing an epic comeback victory over Sierra Canyon.

Orange Lutheran is 4-1 heading into a bye week and a matchup with St. John Bosco on October 4, 2024. / Tarek Fattal

For three quarters, it looked bleak.

Orange Lutheran was down 19 points to Sierra Canyon at halftime.

The Lancers looked like a team that hadn't recovered from last week's blowout loss to Bishop Gorman. Clearly, what happened in Vegas, didn't stay in Vegas ...

Orange Lutheran looked lethargic, uninterested and tired.

Not much changed heading into the final frame. Orange Lutheran trailed Sierra Canyon by 16. But everything changed in the fourth quarter.

Orange Lutheran scored 23 points in the fourth quarter and shutout Sierra Canyon in the second half to complete an epic 33-26 comeback victory in Chatsworth Saturday night.

"I did a poor job getting us ready to play," Orange Lutheran coach Rod Sherman told Dan Albano of the Orange County Register. "... I'm super proud of the way our kids played. I'm incredibly proud of the resiliency they showed.

Sierra Canyon led 26-7 at halftime and 26-10 at the end of three.

Sierra Canyon (2-3) is 0-3 against the Trinity League this season after previous losses to JSerra and St. John Bosco. Orange Lutheran improves to 4-1 heading into a bye week and a matchup with St. John Bosco on October 4.

The comeback was a combination of Orange Lutheran making plays and a Sierra Canyon meltdown.

Orange Lutheran quarterback TJ Lateef scored on a 1-yard touchdown to bring the score within 26-16. The Lancers' defense forced a three-and-out on the ensuing possession to set up running back Steve Chavez on a short-yard touchdown run to make it 26-23 with 9:12 to play.

Sierra Canyon fumbled, and Orange Lutheran took advantage. TJ Lateef connected with Chris Flores to give the Lancers a 30-26 lead - their first of the game.

"We showed maturity to come off a hard loss ... and come back," Lateef said. "That's now how we wanted to start the game, but I told the team, 'it ain't over 'til it's over,' and look that happened."

Orange Lutheran is surging in the fourth quarter. Joseph de la Torre grabs a short pass from Lateef for a 4-yard touchdown.

Orange Lutheran 30, Sierra Canyon 26. 7:50 4Q pic.twitter.com/fYihXAtdB6

— Haley Sawyer (@haleymsawyer) September 22, 2024

On the ensuing possession, Sierra Canyon fumbled a second consecutive time. Orange Lutheran kicked a field goal to stretch its lead to 33-26 with 4:03 to play.

The Trailblazers had a promising drive that was stopped at the Orange Lutheran 13-yard line when Wyatt Becker's pass to Jaden Nickens on fourth down was incomplete.

After Saturday night's loss, Sierra Canyon drops to 6-8 all-time against the Trinity League.

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