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

END OF THE LINE

The last of the South Bay’s unbeaten teams lost Friday night, but not by much. Mira Costa failed on a late two-point conversion attempt and lost to host Culver City, 21-20, in a battle for first place in the Ocean League.

The Mustangs made things exciting in the final minutes, thanks largely to the heroics of Dino Rossi, a 5-foot-8, 150-pound junior who gave Culver City a headache the entire game.

When Mira Costa fell behind, 14-6, in the second quarter, it was Rossi’s 77-yard kickoff return to the Culver City five-yard line that set up a touchdown and game-tying two-point conversion.

And when the Mustangs appeared down and out, trailing 21-14 in the fourth quarter, it was Rossi’s 47-yard interception return for a touchdown with 3 minutes 26 seconds left that brought the Mira Costa fans to their feet. Quarterback Ryan Barnes was stopped inches short of the end zone on a two-point conversion try, but Mira Costa wasn’t through.

After stopping Culver City, the Mustangs took over at their own 21 with 2:01 left and, with the help of two completions from Barnes to Rossi totaling 30 yards, drove to the Culver City 39. On second-and-six, Rossi broke behind the Centaur secondary on a corner pattern, but defensive back Jasiri Rodell recovered in time to intercept Barnes’ pass at the three with 16 seconds left.

“I thought I had him beat, but Jasiri has a lot of speed,” Rossi said. “The ball was a little underthrown, but Barnes is a great quarterback. It was one of those things.”

Mira Costa (8-1, 2-1 in league) must beat Redondo (4-5, 2-1) in a league finale Friday to avoid finishing third and having to open the Southern Section Division VII playoffs on the road against a first-place team. Culver City (6-3, 3-0) won its fifth game in a row to clinch at least a tie for its third consecutive Ocean title.

“It’s real disappointing,” Rossi said. “We were 8-0, and now . . .”

MUSTANG MISTAKES

Mira Costa Coach Don Morrow said going for two points instead of a tie after Rossi’s touchdown was an easy decision.

“We play to win,” he said.

Of course, Mira Costa probably wouldn’t have needed a two-point conversion had it played a more mistake-free game. The Mustangs committed three turnovers, botched a punt to set up a Culver City touchdown and were penalized 15 times for 135 yards. They blew a scoring opportunity in the third quarter when fullback Phil Fonua lost a fumble at the Culver City three. The score was tied at the time, 14-14.

“We certainly didn’t play one of our better games,” Morrow said. “But you have to give (Culver City) credit. They probably made a lot of that happen.”

CHUMPS TO CHAMPS?

A month ago, Serra had an 0-2 Camino Real League record and appeared in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. Today, the Cavaliers have a chance to gain a share of the league title.

Pending a league ruling, Serra could be awarded a forfeit against Verbum Dei because the Eagles allegedly used an ineligible player in a 20-13 victory over the Cavaliers on Oct. 1.

If Serra’s loss to Verbum Dei is reversed, and St. Monica beats Cantwell on Friday, Serra could cause a three-way tie for the Camino Real title with a victory over Pius X. That would leave the Cavaliers, St. Monica and Cantwell deadlocked for first, all at 5-1.

Serra (4-4, 3-2) clinched a spot in the Division VIII playoffs Friday with a 16-14 victory over visiting St. Monica, winning on Michael Wiley’s partially blocked 27-yard field goal with 33 seconds left. It was Serra’s first field goal of the season.

After stopping St. Monica (7-2, 4-1) at the Serra eight with 6:28 left, the Cavaliers controlled the ball for more than five minutes and drove to the St. Monica one. A delay-of-game penalty and a four-yard loss made it fourth-and-goal at the 10, setting up Wiley’s field goal.

“I saw it go up and it went over and . . . there are no words to describe what I felt,” said Wiley, who has been nursing an injury to his kicking leg.

ARMS RACE

North Torrance’s Rocky Jackson won his personal battle with fellow quarterback Tony Brown of Torrance, and in the process helped the host Saxons to a 28-24 victory.

Jackson completed 20 of 33 attempts for 354 yards and two touchdowns to become the area passing leader with nearly 1,700 yards. Brown, the previous leader, completed 16 of 31 passes for 169 yards and a TD.

Jackson didn’t want to take all the credit for the victory that assured North (5-4, 4-0) of at least a tie for the Pioneer League title.

“I credit my receivers and the defense,” said Jackson, whose effort was marred by four interceptions. Torrance safety Aaron Kaopua had two interceptions, one he returned 25 yards for a touchdown with three minutes left for the game’s final score.

Torrance (4-4-1, 2-1-1) dropped into a third-place tie with South Torrance.

LOOKING AHEAD

With a 28-8 victory over Santa Monica, Leuzinger clinched a spot in the Division III playoffs and set the stage for Friday’s Bay League finale against rival Hawthorne.

“Both teams point to this game every season, and it’s going to be a huge one for us this year,” Leuzinger Coach Fred Boehm said.

If the Olympians (5-4, 2-1) beat Hawthorne (8-1, 3-0), they will probably force a three-way tie for the Bay title for the second year in a row. Leuzinger upset Hawthorne, 28-24, in the final league game in 1992, forcing the Cougars to share the title with the Olympians and Peninsula.

Peninsula (8-1, 2-1), tied for second with Leuzinger, finishes league play against 1-8 Inglewood.

Running back Don Williams helped Leuzinger stay in the title hunt by rushing for 230 yards and a touchdown in only 12 carries Friday. He had runs of 88 and 70 yards.

“We’ve had a lot of success moving the ball on the ground, and our offensive line just keeps improving,” Boehm said.

The Leuzinger defense also played well, limiting Santa Monica to 28 yards rushing.

BOUNCING BACK

Unfortunately for Redondo, Peninsula made a full recovery from last week’s emotional loss to Hawthorne, rolling to a 28-0 nonleague victory at Redondo.

“They kept us from doing the things we wanted to do, especially in the first half,” Redondo offensive coordinator Rick Francis said. “Our defense played well, but we had no business playing them.”

The anticipated showdown between the South Bay’s leading rushers turned out to be anticlimactic. Peninsula tailback James Durroh didn’t see much action once the Panthers built a third-quarter lead, finishing with 97 yards and a touchdown in 13 carries. Redondo running back Bob Cracknell, the area’s top rusher, was held to 62 yards in 15 carries.

TOTAL DOMINATION

At one point in its history, Carson was 3-10 against Gardena, once one of the South Bay’s strongest programs. But since then, it’s been all Carson.

The Colts beat Gardena, 40-0, Friday for their 21st consecutive victory and fourth shutout in a row over the Mohicans, who are 0-9 and have fallen quite a bit since their heyday in the 1960s and early ‘70s. They have not beaten Carson since 1974.

Carson (6-3), in first place in the Pacific League at 5-1, will try to extend another winning streak Friday when it plays Southern League leader San Pedro (8-1, 5-1) at Gardena. San Pedro has not beaten the Colts since 1968, losing 19 in a row.

THRILL ON THE HILL

Eight-man coaches Greg Rathke of South Bay Lutheran and Sid Grant of Chadwick agreed that Lutheran’s 38-33 nonleague victory Friday at Chadwick was one of the most exciting games either has ever been involved in.

The Lutheran defense, led by Dorian Sims, stopped Chadwick running back Tim Watkins at the goal line with 10 seconds left to preserve the upset. Lutheran, ranked No. 4 in the Eight-Man Large Division, improved to 6-1-1, while second-ranked Chadwick (7-1) took its first loss.

Rathke called it the biggest victory in the five-year history of the Lutheran program.

“We accomplished what we wanted to in this game--to see if we are as good as the top teams in eight-man football,” Rathke said. “This gives us the confidence we wanted heading into the playoffs.”

Lutheran built a 38-19 lead late in the third quarter behind the play of quarterback Ukeje Agu, who rushed for 112 yards and three touchdowns and passed for two TDs.

But Chadwick stormed back on touchdowns by running back Scooter Atkins and receiver-defensive back Neil Thakur, whose score came on a 51-yard fumble return, one of three fumbles Lutheran lost in the fourth quarter.

“If we hadn’t played scared in the first half, it might have been a different game,” Grant said. “I knew they were a talented team. Their talent prevailed today.”

NOTEWORTHY

* West Torrance quarterback Kirk Bolling returned from a shoulder injury to pass for 245 yards and two touchdowns in a 21-6 Pioneer League victory over El Segundo. West (5-4, 3-1) also welcomed back fullback-defensive lineman Simeon Okamoto, who had missed several games because of a knee injury.

* St. Bernard quarterback Larry Stanback returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown and passed for a 44-yard TD in a 42-7 Mission League victory over Bishop Montgomery (3-6, 2-2), dropping the Knights into a third-place tie.

* Carson’s George Wilson blocked two punts to tie a school record in a 40-0 victory over winless Gardena. Mark Allen did it against San Pedro in 1974.

* Gateway Christian (8-1, 4-0) clinched its third Express League title in four years with a 47-0 victory over Heritage Christian. Since losing their opener against Capistrano Valley Christian, 40-18, the Hawks have outscored their opponents, 343-76.

* San Pedro’s 28-0 victory over Washington was stopped with 2:35 left when a brawl resulted in the ejection of four players, two from each team.

* Crenshaw’s 35-8 victory over Narbonne was stopped with 11:55 left because of darkness.

IN QUOTES

Torrance Coach Bill Bynum, bemoaning his team’s missed opportunities in a 28-24 loss to North Torrance: “I’m flat-out (angry). When you get four interceptions and score a special-team touchdown, (an 81-yard kickoff return by Andre Hilliard), you have got to win the game. We blew coverages, we dropped balls, we had 10 men on the field.”

Bishop Montgomery Coach Matt Giacalone after a 42-7 loss to St. Bernard: “This wasn’t a football game, it was more like the Breeder’s Cup. They had more speed on their line than we have on our whole team.”

San Pedro Coach Mike Walsh after his team clinched the Southern League title with a 28-0 victory over Washington: “From the third quarter on, our offensive line took over the game.”

INJURIES

* Mira Costa tailback Ronnie Hand suffered a hip pointer early in the third quarter against Culver City and did not return. He is questionable for Friday’s game against Redondo.