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PREP FOOTBALL : Pacific Coast League : Helm Helps Laguna Hills Outlast Orange

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Mike Helm completed 13 of 26 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns to lead Laguna Hills to a season-ending 24-21 Pacific Coast League victory over Orange Thursday at Mission Viejo High School.

Helm, who completed just three of 12 first-half passes for 119 yards, gave Laguna Hills (2-8, 1-4) the lead for good with 5:47 left in the game on a 39-yard touchdown pass to Mike Allison. Allison, who earlier caught a 69-yard scoring pass from Helm, finished the game with four catches for 127 yards.

Orange (2-8, 1-4) had taken a 21-17 lead two minutes before the second Helm-to-Allison scoring pass, on a 9-yard touchdown run by Richard Valenzuela.

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Helm’s 69-yard scoring pass to Allison, which came on the game’s second play, gave Laguna Hills a 7-0 lead.

After Orange’s Erik McKay returned the ensuing kickoff 29 yards to the Orange 41, the Panthers took 11 plays to tie the score on Scott McMahon’s 16-yard pass to McKay.

McMahon, who finished the game with 11 completions in 20 attempts for 170 yards, gave Orange a 14-7 lead with three minutes left in the second quarter by throwing a 57-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Henkle.

Laguna Hills tied the score with eight minutes left in the third quarter on a 10-yard pass from Helm to Rob Milo and then took a 17-14 lead with 1:37 left.

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