Foothill heads to playoffs on roll
Foothill heads to playoffs on roll
El Toro vs. Foothill
LAGUNA HILLS - It was admittedly tough for Foothill not to look past El Toro. But after grinding out a 17-9 victory against the Chargers at Laguna Hills High on Friday night, the Knights are ready for the postseason. (Full game stats.)
Foothill, which this week became the top-ranked team in the CIF-SS Southwest region, won for the ninth consecutive time with a suffocating defense and an efficient offense to win the Sea View League title and carry a tide of momentum into the playoffs.
"I got a taste of the playoffs last year but I've been taking every game singly this year," Foothill quarterback Zach Griffith said. "But now that it's over all I can think about is the playoffs."
The Knights (9-1, 5-0) scored on their first two possessions with rushing touchdowns from Ben Douglas (4 yards) and Christopher Workizer (5 yards) before playing conservatively the remainder of the game.
The defense figured out the Chargers' hurry-up offense and limited them to 53 yards and a Vince D'Amato 35-yard field goal in the first half.
Foothill's defense also had an interception by Dominic Cammarota on the first drive of the game to set up a score and three sacks in the first half, with two by Nyles Amelita. The Knights finished the game with four sacks and two interceptions, including Brandon Dupre's pick with 1:40 remaining.
Foothill's offense struggled in the second half and committed numerous penalties.
El Toro (2-8, 2-3) kept the Knights from completing the big play that has been the team's forte all season. Griffith was limited to 107 yards passing and no touchdowns.
The Chargers, who struggled to move the ball for most of the game, broke through for a pair of big plays in the fourth quarter.
Braden Olson connected with Jesse Bueno for 45 yards and then found Elliott Morgan three plays later for a 57-yard touchdown on a play-action pass.
Foothill followed with a 14-play drive that culminated withDane Mitten's 42-yard field goal to go up, 17-9.
Olson finished with 128 yards passing and a touchdown.
Douglas led Foothill with 95 yards and a score on 24 carries.
Contact the writer: preps@ocregister.com
