Mission Viejo coach Chad Johnson has had to replace 10 of his 11 defensive starters this season and bring in several new offensive linemen in key positions against San Clemente.
So how are the Diablos 5-1 positioned to become number 5 in the Division 1 playoffs of the Southern Section, according to CalPreps.com?
“We’re very excited,” said Johnson. “If we can somehow run the table and be 9-1 …”
Daniel Dominguez, a 5-foot-9 wrestler who played the middle linebacker with relentless toughness, is the Diablos’ lead tackler and an example of how the first impression of size means nothing.
“Every single game I look over at my opponent, ‘Oh my god, they’re so much bigger than us,'” said Johnson.
Then Mission Viejo goes out and wins.
Newsletter
Get our high school sports newsletter
Dedicated to the high school sports experience in SoCal, Prep Rally brings you results, stories, and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sport so popular.
Enter your email address
Sign me up
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
The final triumph came against Chatsworth Sierra Canyon in a 27:10 decision. The Diablos have wins over Long Beach Poly and Mission Hills Bishop Alemany. Their only loss was the undefeated Anaheim Servite, 44-7.
Defensive backs Jake Higgins and Ruben Lopez were key players, along with quarterback Kadin Semonza, receivers Mikey Matthews and linemen Shlomo Bass and Rashad Beckham.
Historic victory for West Ranch: Valencia West Ranch had never beaten its rival Valencia in the 2007 season – until Friday evening. Junior quarterback Ryan Staub went for 295 yards in a 23-20 Foothill League win.
Lincoln Remains Undefeated: It was close, but Los Angeles Lincoln improved to 6-0 with a 24-23 Northern League win over Eagle Rock. Vincent Godinez led the defense with five sacks.
One-sided wins: Corona Centennial defeated Riverside King 84-0 on Thursday evening after leading 49-0 after a quarter. Los Angeles defeated Hollywood 83-0 on Friday night. Los Angeles coach Anthony Jackson said he tried three times to get Hollywood to agree to a running clock in the first half. At the end of the second quarter the time had finally come. The Romans led 70-0 at halftime. Matt Lara completed seven of nine passes for 256 yards and five touchdowns for LA
One-hand catches: It was a weekend for great one-hand catches. You can decide which one is the best.
Titus Heimuli of JSerra made his one-handed catch against Santa Margarita.
Huntington Beach’s Nico Brown Edison made it against Newport Harbor.
And Anaheim Servite’s Tetairoa McMillan came up with a one-handed interception against Orange Lutheran.
Best in 805 area code: It was the fight of the undefeated, and Ventura St. Bonaventure (6-0) relied on Jared Barlow to score a 21-14 win over Santa Barbara Bishop Diego (5-1). Barlow returned a blocked kick for a touchdown to break the 14-14 tie and also had an interception.
Comments are closed.