High School Football Preview: Laguna Beach vs. Santa Ana

Nov. 23, 2016 9:21 PM PT

Laguna Beach (8-4) vs. Santa Ana (12-0)

When/where: 7 p.m. Friday at Santa Ana Stadium

Key Breakers: Jr. QB-CB Curtis Harrison (148 of 264 passing for 1,928 yards, 20 TDs and eight INTs; 133 carries for 295 yards and 10 TDs); Sr. WR-LB Ryan Blaser (43 catches for 592 yards and six TDs); So. WR-SS-K-P Sean Nolan (28 catches for 326 yards and three TDs; four INTs; six FGs); Jr. WR-FS Adam Armstrong (20 catches for 354 yards and six TDs; four INTs); Sr. RB-DB Bruce Knill (70 carries for 371 yards and three TDs; 18 catches for 305 yards and five TDs)

Key Saints: Sr. RB-CB Jorge Briseno (138 carries for 1,017 yards and 15 TDs); Jr. QB Damian Macias (72 of 113 passing for 1,118 yards, eight TDs and one INT; 84 carries for 442 yards and seven TDs); Sr. WR-DB Chris Nava (23 catches for 497 yards and four TDs); Jr. WR-DB Pablo Aguirre (26 catches for 308 yards and three TDs); Jr. RB-DB Allen Pacheco (101 carries for 502 yards and six TDs)

Breakdown: Laguna Beach hits the road for the semifinals of the CIF Southern Section Division 13 playoffs … Santa Ana, the No. 1 seed, is looking to make its first section finals appearance since 1986 … Breakers last reached the section finals in 1962 … Saints have only finished the season unbeaten once, in 1944, when they went 6-0-1 … Laguna Beach is the third team this year from the Orange Coast League to face Santa Ana, which beat Godinez, 36-12, and Calvary Chapel, 27-24, during nonleague action … Breakers lost to eventual league champion Godinez, 32-7, and defeated Calvary Chapel, 39-14, to finish second in league … Santa Ana’s two other common opponents with Laguna Beach are Segerstrom and Orange, both from the Golden West League; the Saints won, and the Breakers lost to Segerstrom, 41-10, and to Orange, 48-17.

— David Carrillo Peñaloza