Southwest Division
Southwest Division
Southwest Division
SOUTHWEST DIVISION
TRABUCO HILLS (11-1) VS. CHARTER OAK OF COVINA (10-1-1)
Site, kickoff: Charter Oak High, Friday, 7 p.m.
Outlook:The third-seeded Mustangs and No. 2 Chargers have some recent history. In last season's Southwest semifinals, Charter Oak won at Trabuco Hills, 23-14. This time, Trabuco Hills makes the trip, and the Mustangs enter with more momentum. Trabuco Hills already had four losses last season in its surprising run to the semifinals. This fall, the Mustangs have won 10 consecutive games (including one by forfeit against Woodbridge) going into the semifinals. Trabuco Hills' defense is allowing an average of 8.9 points. Junior cornerback Gabe Lemon has been a key contributor with nine interceptions, and Tyler Karp has been an anchor at linebacker. Charter Oak averages just more than 32 points on offense. The Chargers' offense struggled at times in nonleague as they fell in their opener to Upland, 14-0, and tied Damien, 14-14. But once Charter Oak got to the Miramonte League, the offense took flight. The Chargers also have scored 40 or more points in their past three games. Charter Oak can present a balanced offense in running back Kanaan Snowden (1,262 yards) and quarterback Chris Allen (1,525 yards and 15 touchdowns). Last week, Charter Oak also picked up a second 100-yard rusher in Adam Muema. If the game is close, Trabuco Hills has a strong kicker in Christian Lepore, who has 11 field goals. Running back Matt Wagner (228 carries for 1,337 yards) has been a workhorse for the Mustangs, averaging more than 20 carries per game.
SOUTH HILLS OF WEST COVINA (10-2) VS. EL DORADO (11-1)
Site, kickoff: Valencia High, Saturday, 7 p.m.
Outlook:Two winning streaks collide in this semifinal. The fourth-Huskies have won 10 consecutive games since opening the season with losses against Trabuco Hills (13-6) and La Habra (31-6). The defending Southwest champion Golden Hawks have won 11 consecutive games after their season-opening loss against Esperanza, 16-3. South Hills' offense averages 33 points but has been even better in the playoffs, averaging 50 points in two games. Running back Dorian Wells (5-10, 180) has toppled 100 yards in each playoff game. Junior quarterback Cameron Deen has passed for 334 yards with five touchdowns and has not been intercepted. Top-seeded El Dorado counters with a defense has allows an average of 8.0 points per game. The Golden Hawks' defense is anchored by defensive tackles Anthony Laurenzi (21 sacks) and Trace Wilson (12 sacks). Linebackers Scott Galvan (14 tackles) and Billy Henley (10 tackles) again played well last week against El Toro. One of the standouts for El Dorado last week was running back Devin Deleon, who rushed for a season-high 199 yards.
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Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com
