Mission Viejo cruises to victory in Seattle

SEATTLE - The last time the Mission Viejo football team ventured up to Seattle, it was as much about pleasure as business.

In addition to taking in the scenes of the Northwest, the Diablos dominated Issaquah High at Qwest Field.

This year the team again got the perks of a vacation — a cruise in the Puget Sound and practices at the University of Washington and the Seattle Seahawks’ training facility — and the business portion of the trip to the 2010 Emerald City Kickoff Classic proved to be just about as enjoyable.

The Diablos’ running game and defense overpowered Bothell High in a 49-13 victory Saturday night.

The last time Mission Viejo played on the Seahawks’ home turf in 2005 it scored the first 48 points of the game during a 55-36 victory.

Saturday’s game started much the same way as the Diablos marched right down the field on their first drive with Jahleel Pinner scoring from a yard out.

Bothell, Washington’s second-ranked team in Class 4A, responded with running back Luke Proulx ripping off runs of 24 and 50 yards on his first two carries before scoring from 2 yards out.

But after that it was all Mission Viejo. The Diablos’ size and speed wore down the Cougars early.

The defense chased senior quarterback Braden Foley all over the field. He was making his first varsity start, and Mission Viejo never stopped harassing him.

The Diablos scored on all four of their first-half possessions, rushing for 153 yards and four touchdowns. Pinner scored twice in the early quarters and Tre Madden and Dallas Kessman also scored on short runs.

Coach Bob Johnson said he liked his team coming into the year, but there were a lot of new faces in his starting lineup. He was curious to see how they performed on a big stage.

Against one of the top programs in Washington, they delivered.