Mira Costa Advances to Division VII Final : Prep football: Mustangs race to 20-6 lead, then hold off Kennedy, 23-19. Mira Costa plays Rancho Alamitos in championship game.

The Mira Costa High football team took another step in school history Saturday night, defeating Kennedy, 23-19, in a Southern Section Division VII semifinal playoff game at Western High in Anaheim.

Now there is only one step left for Mira Costa (12-1), which had never advanced past the second-round of the playoffs until this season.

The Mustangs will play Rancho Alamitos (9-3-1) in the championship on Friday at a site to be determined. Rancho Alamitos defeated Arroyo Grande, 24-14, on Friday to advance to the final for the second consecutive year.

Running back Maurice Russell rushed for 139 yards in 21 carries and Phil Fonua ran for two touchdowns to lead Mira Costa past second-seeded Kennedy (11-2).

Quarterback Ryan Barnes completed seven of nine passes for 73 yards and Ronnie Hand gained 31 yards in eight carries for Mira Costa.

“It was a 200% effort,” said Russell, a 5-foot-8, 170-pound sophomore. “I give 120% to the offensive line and 80% to the coaches. Now, we’re getting ready to reload and fire the cannon at Rancho Alamitos.”

Mira Costa opened a 20-6 lead on a 38-yard interception return by linebacker Issac Marino with 10 minutes 29 seconds to play and then held off a Kennedy rally to record its fifth consecutive victory.

“It was a lot of teamwork and a lot of heart, ratings don’t mean much to us,” said Fonua, whose two-yard third-quarter run extended a 6-3 halftime lead to 12-3.

A 35-yard field goal by Julio Rosales gave Mira Costa a 23-13 lead with 1:20 to play, but Kennedy quarterback Chris Clark connected with Mike Clark on a 31-yard touchdown pass with 11 seconds remaining to cut the margin to 23-19.

The Mustangs recovered the on-side kick and ran out the clock.

Russell had 111 yards of the Mustangs’ 141 first-half rushing yards to help Mira Costa take a 6-3 halftime lead. He carried five times for 37 yards on the Mustangs’ opening scoring drive.

Mira Costa, which had 201 yards on the ground and outgained Kennedy, 274-184, drove 69 yards in 10 plays, scoring on a five-yard run by Fonua with 5:43 left in the second quarter.

Kennedy, the Garden Grove League champion, drove from its own 19 to the Mira Costa 16 on its next possession. The Fighting Irish had to settle for a 33-yard field goal by Chris Clark with 1:49 to play in the first half.

Clark completed 12 of 24 passes for 133 yards and Charles Marino had 66 yards in 14 carries for Kennedy.

“We really didn’t do anything different, but we could have made it easier on ourselves,” Mira Costa Coach Don Morrow said.

That was evident late in the first half.

Mira Costa wasted a 56-yard kickoff return by Matt Guerrero and an opportunity to increase its lead when Rosales missed a 26-yard field goal with 26 seconds left before halftime.

Barnes connected with Dino Rossi on a 29-yard pass to move the ball to the five-yard line. The Mustangs were forced to try for the field goal after Russell was dropped for a four-yard loss after a fumble and an incomplete pass.