Jarod Smith School: Esperanza High School Sport:...

Jarod Smith School: Esperanza High School Sport: Football Position: Running back Class: Senior

In rushing efficiency, Smith is a perfect 10. In 107 carries this season, he has gained 1,071 yards, a 10.01-yard-per-carry average. When Smith gets his hands on the ball, the odds are an Esperanza first down will follow, and in the first round of the Division III playoffs Friday, that was doubly true as Smith carried the ball eight times for 181 yards and three touchdowns--an average of 22.6 yards per carry--in a 47-0 victory over Alhambra. Smith, who during the last track and field season was a member of the Esperanza 400-meter relay team, the fastest in Orange County, started the season as a wingback, the position he played last season. But it wasn’t long before Esperanza Coach Gary Meek realized Smith should be getting the ball more than six or seven times per game, so Smith was moved to halfback. After that switch, Smith’s carries doubled and he’s now on the road to shattering the school yards-per-carry record set by Lance Brown, whose average gain last season was 7.6 yards. Other top performers:

Billy Blanton, who completed 16 of 20 passes for 243 yards and five touchdowns, and Derek Sparks, who carried 21 times for 213 yards and three touchdowns, in Mater Dei’s 58-31 victory over Long Beach Poly on Friday.

Tony Fekete, who scored six goals to lead the Costa Mesa water polo team to a 14-13 victory over Dos Pueblos in the Division 2-A semifinals Saturday.

Adam Garcia, who rushed 17 times for 175 yards and three touchdowns and intercepted a pass in El Modena’s 31-0 victory over Culver City on Friday.

Daniel Niednagel of Dana Hills, who had the fastest time for an Orange County runner (15 minutes 27 seconds for three miles), finishing third in the Southern Section Division I race Saturday.

Ulysses Trammell, who gained 285 yards and scored three touchdowns in 40 carries carries as Rancho Alamitos defeated Pomona, 32-0, Friday.