PREP FOOTBALL SPOTLIGHT : FACTS, FIGURES AND COMMENTS FROM LAST WEEK’S GAMES

MIDAS TOUCH

Serra running back Jerald Henry didn’t have to work hard Friday night to rush for 248 yards and five touchdowns. In fact, it took him exactly five plays.

Henry scored a touchdown every time he touched the ball as Serra romped to a 54-3 victory over St. Anthony at Clark Field in Long Beach. His runs covered four, 78, 78, 28 and 60 yards.

“I was surprised,” said Henry, who leads the South Bay with 19 touchdowns and 134 points scored. “We expected (St. Anthony) to play us a lot tougher than they did. Our game plan was to put points on the board fast.”

Henry scored three touchdowns in the first quarter and two in the second half.

“The competition wasn’t all that great, but it was one of my best games,” he said.

MAGIC MIST

As the fog descended on South Torrance’s field Friday night, one sensed there was more at work than a weather man, or football coach, could explain.

South was leading Torrance, 6-0, when the fog rolled in early in the third quarter. By time it lifted early in the fourth quarter, the Spartans had taken advantage of a series of Torrance miscues to extend the lead to 19-0 en route to a 19-6 Pioneer League upset.

Torrance entered the game ranked No. 1 in the CIF-Southern Section Division VIII poll and had a six-game winning streak. South had lost six consecutive games.

“But we’ve been in every game,” South Coach Don Morrow said. “The difference tonight was that we made the plays.”

South punter David Rosato made the most pivotal play. When a high snap sailed over his head early in the third quarter, he chased down the ball, eluded defenders and got off a 49-yard punt that pinned Torrance back at its seven-yard line.

Torrance return man Antone Williamson compounded his team’s problems by being ejected for fighting on the play. The penalty moved the Tartars back to the four. All the while, the fog grew thicker.

After Torrance punted, South mounted a four-play, 44-yard drive capped by tailback Ryan Brady’s two-yard touchdown dive that made it 12-0 with 4:34 left in the third quarter. More fog came, as did more disaster for Torrance.

Welkey Hogan fumbled on the kickoff return and South’s Mark Wash recovered at the Torrance 23. Two plays later, Brady broke up the middle for a 19-yard touchdown run to help make it 19-0 with 3:16 left in the period.

Moments later, South kicker James Mitchell turned to his teammates on the sideline and said: “We’ve got to teach Torrance how to play in the fog.”

Torrance didn’t score until 2:34 was left to play. Yes, the fog had lifted.

CHOKED UP

Morrow was at a loss for words immediately after South’s upset, but not because he was overcome with emotion. His chewing gum became lodged in his throat after one of his players dumped water on him.

“I almost choked to death, honest to God,” he said. “I could feel the water going all over me, and I couldn’t breathe. I said, ‘Come on, this gum has to come out.’ Finally I spit it out. It scared the hell out of me.”

LIFE AT THE TOP

Torrance’s reign as the No. 1 team in Division VIII lasted a week. Coach Rich Busia said he wasn’t sure what effect the rating had on his team, which committed five turnovers and struggled to move the ball against South.

“You never know with high school kids,” Busia said. “You try to get them focused on the game and tell them it’s just a rating, just a temporary thing. When you’re No. 1, everybody wants to get you.”

South defensive back Clay Fulton was trouble for Torrance’s all night. The senior intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble.

BLOCK PARTY

Alex Schultz, West Torrance’s standout running back-linebacker, has made big plays all season, but perhaps none bigger than Friday night.

With 10 seconds left and West clinging to a two-point lead, Schultz broke through the line and blocked a 33-yard field goal attempt by Palos Verdes’ John Miller to preserve a 9-7 nonleague victory.

West co-Coach Mark Knox said he was unsure who had blocked the kick until reviewing the video after the game.

“It happened so quick we didn’t know (who blocked it),” Knox said. “It was really an athletic play. Not too many kids could have done it.”

Knox said Schultz broke through the gap between center and guard and dove far enough to get his left hand on the ball.

“He kind of stumbled through and dove from about the line of scrimmage,” Knox said. “He was parallel to the ground, with both arms in front. He got his hand on the ball just as it was coming off the tee.”

The play capped another all-around game for Schultz, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound senior. He rushed for 75 yards and a touchdown, improving his season totals to 1,073 yards and 12 TDs, and made his usual contributions at linebacker. He entered the game leading West in tackles.

INJURIES

Mira Costa Coach Larry Petrill said Saturday that Ryan Stonebraker, the Mustangs’ standout two-way lineman, suffered a “significant” knee injury Friday night in an 18-12 victory over Rolling Hills. Stonebraker left the game in the first quarter and was taken to a hospital. Petrill said X-rays proved negative, but more tests are planned to determine if there is any ligament damage. Stonebraker’s status for the rest of the season is questionable.

WALSH WATCH

Carson quarterback John Walsh set four more school records Friday afternoon in the Colts’ 31-14 victory over visiting Crenshaw.

Walsh completed 23 of 45 passes for 470 yards and four touchdowns. The yardage and attempts were single-game records. Also, he established season records with 2,465 yards and 127 completions.

Walsh would have surpassed 600 yards passing Friday, but had several completions called back by penalty, including a 72-yard touchdown to Latario Rachal in the third quarter.

Carson set records with 615 yards total offense and 702 all-purpose yards.

STREAKS

* Serra defeated St. Anthony, 54-3, to extend its winning streak to 20 games.

* Narbonne fell to Gardena, 25-0, extending its losing streak to 14 games.

* Inglewood fell to Hawthorne, 35-6, for its 17th consecutive Bay League defeat.

* South Torrance beat Torrance, 19-6, to snap a six-game losing streak and end Torrance’s six-game winning streak.

* North Torrance beat Centennial, 40-0, to end a six-game losing streak and extend Centennial’s losing streak to 22 games.

IN QUOTES

Miraleste Coach Tony Bantula, on the fog that blanketed the Santa Monica College field Friday night in his team’s 48-35 loss to St. Monica: “I don’t know if it affected the playing, but it definitely affected the coaching. We couldn’t see what was going on. I’m serious. We couldn’t see the other sideline. We only were able to get one quarter of (usable) film.”

South Torrance Coach Don Morrow, on the third-quarter ejection of Torrance receiver-defensive back Antone Williamson for fighting in South’s 19-6 upset: “Their kid did a stupid thing. We were playing hard the whole night. It’s not like we needed anything to elevate us any higher, and that did. Our intensity got up even higher after that.”

Morningside Coach Ron Tatum, on his team’s showdown with Mira Costa next week for the Ocean League title: “They seem to have a lot of weapons and play very motivated football. They have speed like Redondo and they’re bigger like West and Torrance. They pose different problems for us.”

Gardena Coach Mike Sakurai, on his team’s 25-0 victory over Narbonne that kept the Mohicans tied for first place in the Southern League: “It was our best defensive game of the season. We controlled the line of scrimmage.”

Bishop Montgomery Coach Steve Carroll, on the deflected six-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter that lifted St. Paul to a 14-7 victory: “You hate to lose any way, but that was real tough.”