ORANGE COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL : Century League : Santa Ana Has Just Enough to Get Sixth Straight Victory, 14-6

Before Friday night’s Century League game against Foothill High School, Santa Ana Coach Dick Hill, received some comforting news.

He had learned Friday morning that senior starters Royal Wilbon and Albert Ruiz would be eligible to play in Friday night’s game ending confusion regarding the players’ academic standing according to California Interscholastic Federation bylaws.

Santa Ana officials had informed the Southern Section office that they thought the players were ineligible, and expected to forfeit four nonleague victories.

But the misunderstanding was behind Hill and the Saints Friday night as they defeated Foothill, 14-6, in front of 1,500 in Santa Ana Stadium.

The victory was Santa Ana’s sixth straight. The Saints are ranked third in the Southern Conference and fourth in the Orange County Sportswriters Assn. poll.

“We played only good enough to win,” Hill said. “Whenever you play poorly and win you feel fortunate.”

Both teams played sloppy as Santa Ana (6-1, 2-0) committed four turnovers and Foothill five with one late in the third quarter that proved to be costly.

With 3:13 remaining in the third quarter, defensive lineman Oscar Wilson stripped the ball from Knight running back John Mountain, deep in Foothill territory. He returned it 13 yards for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

Running back Robert Lee scored the other Santa Ana touchdown on a one-yard run off left tackle midway in the second quarter.

Lee had 88 yards rushing in 18 carries and has 3,693 career yards rushing that moves him into fourth place on the all-time Orange County career rushing list.

Foothill (3-4, 0-2) received its only score on Mike Horton’s 11-yard run late in the fourth quarter. The Knights were limited to 123 yards of total offense. Mountain, the county’s second leading rusher, was held to 59 yard in 15 carries. Horton had 58 yards in 12 carries.

“We are still not a consistent team,” Hill said. “ Our offense sputtered and we really just stopped ourselves tonight.”