Draft Helps Valencia Overwhelm Injury-Riddled Long Beach Wilson

It already had been a hard day’s night for Valencia running back Chris Draft, and the first quarter wasn’t even over yet.

Most high school running backs would be satisfied with 115 yards total offense and three touchdowns in a game. But Friday night, Draft had done that with 40 seconds left in the first quarter.

Draft, who played only the first half, scored on a 67-yard screen pass and runs of one and 12 yards in the first quarter as Valencia, 10th-ranked in Orange County, scored on its first five possessions in a 49-0 rout of an injury-plagued Long Beach Wilson.

Quarterback Rob Petko completed nine of 13 pass attempts for 184 yards and two touchdowns for Valencia, the two-time defending Southern Section Division VI champion.

Draft rushed for 45 yards in eight carries and added 79 yards on two receptions. As a linebacker, he keyed a tough Valencia defense that held Wilson to only 112 yards total offense, including a negative-seven yards rushing.

The Tigers also got strong efforts from sophomore linebacker Ryan Reilly (nine tackles) and noseguard Gary DePhillips, who blocked a Wilson field-goal attempt in the second quarter.

Valencia (3-1) has outscored its past three opponents, 115-0, since a 30-26 loss to Villa Park in the season opener. Wilson, without seven players because of injuries, dropped to 0-4.

“The last three games our defense has been running over people,” Draft said. “That wasn’t real Valencia defense against Villa Park. That was Valencia ‘D’ tonight.”

The Tigers scored on their second play from scrimmage when Petko scrambled out of the reach of a blitzing Adam Hess and hit Draft on a screen pass. Draft did the rest, going nearly untouched for the 67-yard touchdown.

The Tigers got the ball back when defensive end Brian Bilhartz recovered a Hess fumble at the Wilson 19-yard line. Six plays later, Draft scored from the one, and Luis Garcia’s extra-point gave the Tigers a 14-0 lead with 5:35 left in the first quarter.

Draft’s third touchdown was a 12-yard run off tackle in which he dragged three Wilson players into the end zone from the five. On the Tigers’ next possession, Petko found Jermaine Gray open on the fly for a 59-yard touchdown pass to push the lead to 28-0.

Valencia led, 35-0, at halftime and outgained Wilson, 261 yards to 80, in the first half.

Valencia’s victory sets up a showdown next Thursday with La Mirada, the defending section Division VIII champion.