He Learned a Lesson in High Stakes Game : Football: Capistrano Valley’s Solliday still frets about an interception against El Toro. Tonight he faces Santa Ana.

It was only one pass, but it taught Tony Solliday a valuable lesson about playing quarterback.

It was only one game, but the stakes were high when Solliday and Capistrano Valley High School met El Toro for the South Coast League title two weeks ago.

And it was only a moment later, after El Toro missed a potential game-winning field goal, that Solliday could finally relax after throwing an ill-advised interception with two minutes remaining.

Capistrano Valley was clinging to a 22-21 lead when it gained possession with four minutes remaining to play. Two minutes later, Solliday would underthrow a pass that was intercepted by El Toro linebacker Brian Haas at his 33-yard line.

“I was wishing I would have had a rubber band attached to the ball so I could snap it back,” Solliday said. “If ever there was a pass I could have back, that was it. The play had been open all night; I just underthrew the ball.”

When El Toro lined up for a 35-yard field goal attempt with 16 seconds remaining, Solliday said he could hardly stand to watch.

“I didn’t even want to think about it,” he said. “I was the happiest guy in the stadium when he missed.

“I learned something that night. The quarterback gets too much credit when you win, and gets blamed too much when you lose. If they make that field goal, I’m the goat.”

Instead, Capistrano Valley held on for a 22-21 victory, won the South Coast League championship and was named the county’s No. 1-ranked team in the final Orange County Sportswriters’ Assn. prep football poll.

Capistrano Valley entered the Division III playoffs as the top-seeded team and will meet Santa Ana at 7:30 tonight in the quarterfinals in Santa Ana Stadium.

Solliday, a 5-foot-11 1/2, 175-pound junior, has completed 126 of 210 pass attempts for 1,904 yards and 16 touchdowns with only four interceptions. He threw three touchdown passes in a 35-21 victory over Burbank Burroughs before departing midway through the third quarter.

Last season, Solliday threw more interceptions (11) than touchdown passes (seven). Solliday’s steady improvement this season has been one of the big reasons Capistrano Valley has gone from 6-5 in 1988 to 11-0 in ’89.

“I got discouraged a couple of times last year,” he said. “I threw four interceptions against Dana Hills and four interceptions against El Modena. My biggest problem was simply that I didn’t have varsity game experience. I had to learn in a hurry.”

Solliday took a crash course in quarterbacking following the season, refining his skills in spring football drills and then competing in passing league competition over the summer.

“I spent a lot of time working with (receivers) Dave Poltl and Dan Zamora, working on our timing patterns. Both of those guys should get a lot of the credit. They’re great receivers who make me look good.”

Zamora’s acrobatic, one-handed 27-yard touchdown reception in a 27-14 victory over Mission Viejo would make any highlight film.

“His right hand never touched the ball,” Solliday said. “That catch wasn’t a ‘10,’ it was an ’11.’ I don’t have to be exact when I throw to those guys; they’ll make the play.”

Solliday’s family moved to Mission Viejo when he was 2 months old and he grew up playing in the Saddleback Valley’s Pop Warner organization along with El Toro standouts Danny Maestas, Jason Brizic and Haas.

He was the starting quarterback for Capistrano Valley’s freshman team that finished 9-1, losing only to El Toro.

Solliday was elevated to the varsity team as a sophomore, but figured to be the team’s backup quarterback with Chi Chi Biehn projected as the starter. But after one game, Biehn was moved to tailback and Solliday was named the starter.

“It was a tough start,” he said. “We played Edison in the game of the week. I was really nervous, but I survived.”

Solliday passed for 1,104 yards as a sophomore and completed nearly 59% of his pass attempts. He felt strongly that 1989 would be Capistrano Valley’s season.

Capistrano Valley served an early notice that it was a formidable team by defeating Edison, 37-10, as Solliday passed for 153 yards and two touchdowns.

The Cougars passed their first big test when they defeated Mission Viejo, then the county’s top-ranked team, setting up the showdown with El Toro in the game of the year that featured two undefeated teams.

“Those are the games you live for; those are the games you work your tail off for,” Solliday said. “I can remember times this year when I was driving to school with my car lights on, and coming home from school with car lights on.

“But those long hours were all worth it when we won the South Coast League championship and were ranked No. 1.”