ROYAL'S STREAK ENDED : WESTLAKE 43, ROYAL 16.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Daily News Staff Writer

Royal High had the hype, the winning streak and the enthusiasm.

Westlake had Travis Campbell, Joey Cuppari and Zac Wasserman.

It doesn't take a math major to figure out who comes out ahead in that equation, although the three Warriors kept the stat crew plenty busy Friday night in a 43-16 Marmonte League win at Westlake.

Wasserman, a sophomore quarterback, completed 15 of 23 passes for 292 yards and four touchdowns. Cuppari caught three of the touchdowns and Campbell another.

On the night, Campbell caught six passes for 127 yards and threw for a touchdown. Cuppari had five catches for 110 yards.

The Highlanders (3-1, 0-1) were riding a wave of confidence after winning three games to start the year. They hoped to legitimize their record with a win over the Warriors (2-2, 1-0).

Now, they have to rebound from a blowout loss.

Westlake, which lost two of three games to start the season, was impressive offensively but also shut down Royal's high-powered offense with an aggressive defense.

The Highlanders managed just 101 yards rushing and only 92 yards passing. They had been averaging 402.7 yards per game.

Westlake was methodical and explosive while taking a 12-3 lead at halftime.

The explosive part came in the form of Cuppari and Wasserman, who combined on a 78-yard touchdown pass on the Warriors' third play from scrimmage.

Cuppari leaped over Royal cornerback Bryant Phipps to catch the ball at the 30-yard line and raced untouched the rest of the way for the score.

Cuppari and Wasserman hooked up again in the second quarter on a 6-yard touchdown pass. This time the Warriors pounded out a 9-play, 68-yard drive in which Wasserman completed passes of 12, 13 and 18 yards. The 13-yarder went to Campbell on a fourth-and-1 at the Highlanders' 48-yard line.

Royal was able to move the ball - its opening drive covered 62 yards on 11 plays - but the Highlanders couldn't convert a fourth-and-3 from the Warriors' 28-yard line. Another drive ended at the Westlake 27 when Campbell made a diving interception.

Royal finally scored with three seconds to play in the first half on Jon Ruiz's 34-yard field goal to make the score 12-3. Donnie Knipps intercepted Wasserman a play earlier to set up the kick.

Westlake took command in the third quarter when Campbell caught a 56-yard touchdown pass from Wasserman to make the score 18-6.

Later in the quarter, Campbell threw 37 yards to Kevin Howard to make the score 24-10.

For Royal, Ryan Gaudioso had an 85-yard interception return for a touchdown and Rickey Palacios caught a 64-yard pass from Braden Fien for a touchdown.

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Photo

PHOTO Royal running back Bryant Phipps can't escape the Westlake defenders.

Shaun Dyer / Special to the Daily News