PREP FOOTBALL / Special Pullout Section : Rancho Alamitos’ Turbarg Stuns Arroyo Grande : DIVISION VII

Arroyo Grande’s defense was ready for Rancho Alamitos’ halfback Kevin Allen, who had run for 460 yards in his last two games. But they weren’t prepared for receiver Jeff Turbarg, who had caught only seven passes all season.

Turbarg nearly equaled that total Friday night at Bolsa Grande High, as he caught six passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns from John Frank in Rancho Alamitos’ 24-14 victory over Arroyo Grande in the Southern Section Division VII semifinals.

After a 1-2-1 start, Rancho Alamitos is going to the section title game for the second consecutive year. The Vaqueros (9-3-1), who lost to Sunny Hills, 14-13, in last year’s final, will play the winner of tonight’s Kennedy-Manhattan Beach Mira Costa game on Friday.

Arroyo Grande sometimes stacked nine players on the line of scrimmage in an attempt to contain Allen, but that continually left Turbarg, a 5-foot-8, 150-pound junior, wide open in the middle of the field.

Allen was held to 53 yards in 13 carries in the first half, but Turbarg gave Rancho Alamitos its only touchdown of the half on a 34-yard reception from Frank.

Arroyo Grande tied the score, 7-7, with 10:51 left in the half by methodically marching 80 yards in 12 plays. Running back Joe Weller (118 yards on 20 carries) scored the Eagles’ touchdown on a one-yard run.

Rancho Alamitos took a 10-7 halftime lead with three minutes left on Tony Luce’s 45-yard field goal that would have been good from 55 yards.

Allen, spurred on by an emotional halftime speech from Rancho Alamitos Coach Doug Case, busted out of the blocks on the first play from scrimmage, as he went nearly untouched 63 yards down the right sideline on a power sweep.

“The coach was trying to pump us up,” Allen said. “He wasn’t mad. He just wasn’t happy.”

Arroyo Grande Coach John Huss said Allen’s run was the turning point.

“That was indicative of the game,” he said. “If we stop them on that drive, we’re right back in the game.”

But Arroyo Grande never got back into it after Allen’s run. The Eagles could never get Brian Jones, their 6-4, big-play receiver, loose. Jones caught only one pass for 12 yards, on the game’s last play, and ran six times for 24 yards. Arroyo Grande quarterback Juan Ramirez tried going deep to Jones twice in the second half, but Jones dropped one pass that might have gone for a touchdown and Ramirez overthrew the other.

“The big plays had worked for us all year, but we couldn’t get them (Friday),” Huss said.

But Turbarg was the one making all the big plays--the biggest occurred in the third quarter on an audible from Frank that resulted in a 32-yard touchdown pass that put Rancho Alamitos ahead 24-7.

“We had a run called, but I saw the two linebackers blitzing and the safeties coming up, so I just called on Jeff and threw it out there,” Frank said. “I thought I threw it too far, but he reached out and grabbed it.”

Turbarg grabbed everything Friday night, but he still was having a hard time believing it.

“I thought they’d take the middle away after I caught a couple, but they never did,” Turbarg said.