DIVISION III : Manu, Neal Pace Paramount Past El Toro, 26-20

Paramount High’s duo of quarterback Jack Manu and tailback Leon Neal gave a repeat performance Saturday night, winning the Southern Section Division III title for the second consecutive year with a 26-20 victory over El Toro at Cerritos College.

A crowd of 9,100 saw Manu throw a 21-yard touchdown pass with 1:47 remaining to seal the victory. It also saw Neal rush for 182 yards as Paramount finished at 13-1.

Paramount controlled the ball in the second half with Neal gaining 144 yards in only nine carries. But it was Manu who provided the finishing touch, scrambling on third-and-goal from El Toro’s 21-yard line and finding wide receiver Darrell Cloy unprotected in the rear of the end zone for the game-winning touchdown.

“We can play with anybody, and I think we proved that by winning 25 games over the last two years,” Paramount Coach Ken Sutch said. “We certainly beat a very fine team. You saw an athlete (Manu) make quite a throw when it looked like El Toro was coming back.”

El Toro (12-2) was trailing, 20-6, after three quarters when Paramount drove to the Chargers’ one-yard line. But Matt Krajec recovered a fumble and the Chargers drove 99 yards to pull to 20-13 with 5:50 remaining.

“We didn’t quit,” El Toro Coach Bob Johnson said. “We went 99 yards, and then went the distance again. We went 12-2 and ended up with nothing. It’s a tough year when you go 12-2 and lose a league title and a CIF championship.”

The loss overshadowed an outstanding game by El Toro wide receiver Rob Johnson. Johnson caught nine passes for 145 yards and will move to quarterback next season. El Toro quarterback Steve Stenstrom passed for 253 yards but threw two interceptions.

El Toro was in control through the first quarter until defensive back Jorge Jacobo stunned the Chargers with a 67-yard interception return with a minute remaining.

Jacobo stepped in front of intended receiver Bo Haley, picked off Stenstrom’s pass and had no one to stop him. Rolando Avila’s conversion gave Paramount a 7-6 lead.

El Toro outgained Paramount, 111-8, in total yardage in the first quarter. The Chargers scored on their first possession, driving 73 yards in 14 plays with Stenstrom mixing some high-percentage passes with the running of Jerome Oakman.

Stenstrom completed three of his first four passes but then misfired on 10 of his next 13 attempts. He came close to pushing El Toro ahead, however, with 10 seconds remaining in the first half, barely overthrowing a diving Kevin Rowe in the end zone.