Labrum, Eagles air-out Cougars

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL

Santa Fe Christian QB throws for 368 yards as Steele Canyon suffers first loss

NO. 13 SANTA FE CHRISTIAN 42, NO. 14 STEELE CANYON 14

By Ramon Scott
EastCountySports.com

DEL MAR — Steele Canyon found the end zone more frequently than it had in its season opener.

The problem was that Santa Fe Christian seemed capable of reaching it whenever it felt like it.

Senior quarterback Dax Labrum completed 14 of 22 passes for 368 yards and three touchdowns, leading No. 13 Santa Fe Christian past No. 14 Steele Canyon, 42-14, Friday night at Torrey Pines High.

The rematch of last season’s dramatic CIF San Diego Section Division II championship game never developed into another finish resembling the Eagles’ 44-41 title victory.

Steele Canyon briefly demonstrated that it might.

Senior quarterback Gavin Caha connected with Josiah Stocker for a 20-yard touchdown during the first quarter, and Jordan Harvey’s extra point brought the Cougars within 8-7.

Santa Fe Christian responded with a 7-yard touchdown run by Brodie Stuart, extending its advantage to 15-7. Then Labrum and the Eagles’ explosive passing game began creating the separation Steele Canyon could not overcome.

Labrum found senior Chase Wooley for a 66-yard touchdown, one of several long connections that helped Santa Fe Christian accumulate 450 yards of offense.

Wooley finished with six receptions for 176 yards, averaging 29.3 yards per catch. Kylan Brunn added two catches for 86 yards, including a 54-yard reception, and Brady Berg caught a 33-yard touchdown pass.

Labrum averaged more than 26 yards per completion while producing a quarterback rating of 146.8. He did not throw an interception.

Berg supplied the Eagles with balance around their quarterback’s big night. The senior scored three touchdowns, rushing for two and catching another. He finished with 35 rushing yards and 33 receiving yards.

Santa Fe Christian (2-0) has now defeated two East County Sports Top 25 teams by a combined score of 80-20. The Eagles opened the season with a 38-6 victory over No. 17 Helix before handling Steele Canyon in considerably more decisive fashion than they had in last year’s championship game.

The Cougars’ offense showed progress after producing only one touchdown in a 7-3 opening victory over San Diego, but it could not keep pace once Labrum began striking downfield.

Caha completed 16 of 32 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns and remained Steele Canyon’s leading rushing threat with 57 yards on five carries. His 199 combined rushing and passing yards accounted for most of the Cougars’ 258-yard offensive output.

Junior Cameron Trujillo caught Steele Canyon’s other touchdown pass, finishing with one reception for 15 yards. Stocker caught four passes for 34 yards, while Malcholm Ballard led the Cougars with six receptions for 55 yards.

Steele Canyon averaged 5.5 yards per rushing attempt but ran only 21 times. Michael Ortiguero Jr. carried 10 times for 38 yards, and Marcus Hunt added 21 yards on six attempts.

Defensively, senior Luke Rode recorded eight solo tackles to lead the Cougars. Gunner Minich finished with seven total stops, including five solo tackles, while Jamieson Sablan made four.

Those individual efforts could not prevent Santa Fe Christian from producing 372 passing yards and six touchdowns overall.

The result dropped Steele Canyon to 1-1 and answered the central question surrounding the Cougars after their defensive victory in Week 1. Their offense was better, but against one of San Diego County’s most dangerous passing attacks, improvement alone was not enough.

A year after Steele Canyon pushed Santa Fe Christian to the final possession with a furious championship-game comeback, Labrum and the Eagles left no opening for another one.

CAHA REMAINS CENTER OF COUGARS’ OFFENSE

Senior quarterback Gavin Caha accounted for 199 of Steele Canyon’s 258 total yards against Santa Fe Christian, continuing to carry a substantial portion of the Cougars’ offensive workload.

Caha completed 16 of 32 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns while adding a team-high 57 rushing yards on only five attempts. Through two games, he is averaging 133 passing yards and 59.5 rushing yards.

His mobility produced several of Steele Canyon’s most successful plays Friday, but the Cougars could not sustain enough drives to keep Santa Fe Christian’s explosive offense off the field.

Caha distributed his 16 completions among six receivers. Malcholm Ballard caught six passes for 55 yards, Josiah Stocker had four receptions for 34 yards and a touchdown, and Cameron Trujillo caught the Cougars’ other scoring pass.

Steele Canyon has now produced 495 yards through two games, with Caha accounting for 385 yards of total offense—nearly 78 percent of the Cougars’ production.

LOOKAHEAD: COUGARS FACE UNBEATEN EASTLAKE

Steele Canyon’s demanding nonleague schedule continues Friday when the Cougars travel to Eastlake for a 7 p.m. game on Military Appreciation Night.

Eastlake improved to 2-0 by defeating Morse on Friday, giving the Titans victories in each of their first two games while allowing only 16 total points.

The Morse result also supplies an early point of comparison involving the Grossmont Valley League. Santana opened its season by going to Morse and defeating the Tigers 37-12, then followed with a 49-0 victory over Crawford.

Eastlake has relied more heavily upon its ground game. Running back and linebacker David Branco is averaging 138 rushing yards per game, while quarterback Joe Waters leads a passing attack averaging 111 yards. Defensively, the Titans are averaging 4.5 sacks per game, with Noah McCurty contributing 1.5.

The matchup should place renewed importance on Steele Canyon’s opening-week formula: defense, field position and avoiding the explosive plays that allowed Santa Fe Christian to pull away.

Steele Canyon (1-1) will be attempting to rebound from its first loss, while Eastlake will try to remain unbeaten in its first significant test against an East County Sports Top 25 opponent.

The teams met in 2019 and 2021 with SC winning 17-6 in the ’19 season opener at home, then losing a season-opener at Eastlake, 10-6, in 2021.