Smith Leads Newbury Park : Prep football: Junior quarterback throws for 396 yards as Panthers outscore Simi Valley, 40-35.

In a game featuring nearly 1,000 yards in offense, Newbury Park High scored the most important touchdown during Friday night’s Marmonte League game with visiting Simi Valley--the last one.

Junior quarterback Keith Smith’s seven-yard bootleg with 1 minute 31 seconds to play gave the Panthers a 40-35 victory and decided the battle between two of the area’s top passers.

Smith completed 32 of 51 passes for 396 yards--all school records--and three touchdowns. Senior Eric Bennett of Simi Valley matched his counterpart almost spiral for spiral, completing 21 of 37 for 350 yards and lofting touchdown passes of 60, 61, 50 and six yards.

However, Bennett’s final pass with 25 seconds left was intercepted by linebacker Justin Simo at Newbury Park’s 35-yard line.

With three minutes to play, Bennett capped a 12-play, 93-yard drive by Simi Valley (2-3, 0-2 in league play) with a six-yard pass to Aaron Whitley to give the Pioneers their first lead, 35-32.

However, Smith, who also rushed for a game-high 108 yards in 11 carries, clearly was the game’s star.

He drove Newbury Park 78 yards in the final 2:52. The big play was a 38-yard bomb to Leodes Van Buren for a first down at the seven. Van Buren caught a school-record 15 passes for 174 yards.

Smith survived two scares on the final drive. Simi Valley’s Matt Fuller dropped an errant Smith pass at midfield with no one between him and the end zone just two plays before the bomb to Van Buren.

And on the play before Smith’s game-winning run, Simi Valley’s David Quitazol dropped a Smith pass in the end zone.

Smith, who completed 18 of 30 passes for 230 yards in the first half, led Newbury Park on three touchdown drives en route to a 20-14 halftime lead. Van Buren capped the opening drive by taking a Smith fumble on the Simi Valley one-yard line into the end zone.

Simi Valley countered two plays later with a 60-yard bomb from Bennett to Bryan Kalbfus. Bennett also hit Kalbfus with touchdown passes of 61 yards--from punt formation on fourth down--and 50 yards in the second half.