SOUTHERN SECTION FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS : DIVISION VII : Clayton Leads Trabuco Hills Past Arroyo Grande

Senior tailback Jeff Clayton ran for 215 yards and scored two touchdowns to lead Trabuco Hills to a 26-10 victory over Arroyo Grande in a Division VII quarterfinal game Friday night at Arroyo Grande High.

The Mustangs (7-4-1) led, 18-10, late in the fourth quarter when Nate Urone intercepted a pass to set up Clayton’s final touchdown, a 56-yard run, to secure the victory.

Trabuco Hills, which plays La Mirada next, built a 12-3 lead at the half behind Clayton’s running, Pat Barnes’ passing and a solid defense.

Barnes threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Clayton on the Mustangs’ first possession to cap an 80-yard drive. Clayton caught a 24-yard pass to key the drive. The PAT attempt by Jason Teno was blocked, the first of two extra point attempts blocked by the Eagles.

On the next series, Arroyo Grande drove from its 43 to the Trabuco Hills 19, where Chris Budke kicked a 36-yard field goal to make the score 6-3.

Trabuco Hills scored again with 8:15 left in the second quarter on a 39-yard pass from Barnes to Nathan Bates, who was alone on the right sideline. The PAT was blocked to make the score 12-3.

Clayton gained 98 yards on 12 carries, while Barnes completed six of 11 passes for 103 yards in the first half.