PREP FOOTBALL : Friday’s Southern Section Playoff Highlights : Eisenhower Upsets Bishop Amat

Michael Smalls caught a four-yard touchdown pass from Dan Rentz with 6:08 remaining to give Rialto Eisenhower High School a 14-7 win over No. 1-seeded La Puente Bishop Amat Friday night in a Big Five Conference quarterfinal game at Eisenhower.

Eisenhower opened the scoring in the second quarter on a 20-yard pass from Rentz to Charles Redd. Rentz finished the game with just 7 completions in 22 attempts for 103 yards.

Bishop Amat tied the game in the third quarter on a 72-yard touchdown run by Eric Bieniemy, but in 18 other carries Eishenhower held him to 58 yards.

Bishop Amat narrowly missed tying the game again with 1:07 left when, on fourth and three from the Eisenhower 19, J.R. Phillips completed a pass to Carlos Hernandez in the end zone, but Hernandez was ruled to have caught the ball just beyond the end line.

The loss was the first of the season for Bishop Amat (11-1), the Angelus League champion.

Eisenhower (10-2), the second-place finisher in the Citrus Belt League, will play Encino Crespi, a 25-8 winner over Colton, in a Big Five semifinal game. Bellflower St. John Bosco, which defeated Long Beach Millikan, 33-14, will play Citrus Belt League champion Fontana, which downed Loyola, 17-14, in the other semifinal game.

Los Altos 35, Hemet 14--Quarterback Darren DeSpain completed 10 of 19 passes for 169 yards and touchdowns of 8, 22 and58 yards in the Eastern Conference quarterfinal game at Hemet. Wide receiver Jim Peters had touchdown catches of 22 and 58 yards. Los Altos’ David Crosby gained 92 yards and scored twice in 17 carries. Los Altos is 11-1. Hemet completed the season 9-2-1.

Antelope Valley 27, Pasadena 7--Eric Mortensen carried 21 times for 145 yards and touchdowns of 40 and 14 yards in the Coastal Conference quarterfinal games at Pasadena City College. Antelope Valley quarterback Ron Whipple completed 10 passes for 169 yards and 1 touchdown.

Hart 52, Verbum Dei 12--Quarterback Jimmy Bonds completed 26 of 38 passes for 353 yards, including touchdowns of 36, 1 and 29 yards in the Northwestern Conference game at College of the Canyons. Chris Hite had 12 receptions for 160 yards and 2 touchdowns. Hart is 11-1. Verbum Dei finishes 9-2-1.

Canyon Country Canyon 20, Thousand Oaks 9--Ken Sollom completed 10 of 15 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown to lead visiting Canyon to a Coastal Conference win over Thousand Oaks. Wide receiver Chad Zeigler had 4 catches for 104 yards, including a 48-yard touchdown, and Lance Cross rushed for 104 yards and a 1-yard touchdown in 19 carries for Canyon. Canyon (11-1) clinched the game with an 80-yard, 12-play fourth-quarter drive that consumed four minutes and ended with Sollom’s 1-yard touchdown run. Thousand Oaks, which lost to Canyon, 26-7, in the regular season, finishes at 10-2.

Mission Viejo 14, Foothill 0--For the third straight year, the Diablos eliminated the Knights in the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference playoffs. Mission Viejo (7-5) got a second-quarter touchdown on a 29-yard pass from Tony Arnone to Eric Ekdahl, but it was Rick Angle’s 95-yard interception for a touchdown with 6:19 remaining in the game played at Tustin High that ensured the win. Foothill ended the season at 7-5.

Santa Maria 20, Redondo 14--Santa Maria’s Junior Rosbia , replacing injured Jackman LeBlanc, ran for second-half touchdowns of one and six yards in the Northwestern Conference game at Santa Maria as the Saints gained the semifinals. Matt Almaguer was Santa Maria’s leading rusher with 142 yards in 16 carries. Scott Yessner completed a 48-yard touchdown pass to Mike Stone and Nat Musik scored on a 1-yard run to account for Redondo’s two touchdowns. Yessner completed 10 of 21 passes for 140 yards for Santa Maria (11-1). Redondo finishes 9-3.

Victor Valley 21, Baldwin Park 14--Running back Dion Morrow returned a first-quarter kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown and rushed 14 times for 167 yards and 2 touchdowns as the Jackrabbits advanced to the Southeastern Conference semifinals at Victor Valley. Morrow, a junior, rushed for touchdowns of 85 and 34 yards. Victor Valley is 9-2-1. Baldwin Park finishes 8-4.

Bishop 23, Ontario Christian 0--The No. 1-seeded Broncos (12-0) got 1-yard touchdowns from Jerry Kessler and Tim Crowl and a 62-yard scoring run by Keith Richmond in the Inland Conference quarterfinal game at Ontario Christian. Bishop had 175 yards rushing and 157 yards passing and limited Ontario Christian (7-5) to 75 yards, all on the ground.