L.A. Baptist Reaches Its Final Goal : High school football: Romero helps undefeated Knights to 43-21 victory over Brethren Christian and a Division X championship.

The L.A. Baptist High football team set three goals before the season began. And on Friday, the Knights pulled off the hat trick.

L.A. Baptist closed out an undefeated season with a stunning 43-21 victory over Brethren Christian in the Southern Section Division X championship game in front of about 6,000 at Birmingham High.

“It’s an absolutely perfect season,” said Knight quarterback Zack Hernandez, who threw three touchdown passes to Jim Romero in the first half. “We had our goals (set) before the season . . . go undefeated, win our league and win the division.

“This is the best feeling I’ve ever felt in my life.”

L.A. Baptist (13-0), the Alpha League champion, benefited from a 27-point second quarter and wasn’t threatened thereafter. It is the second division title for the Knights, who won a small schools championship in 1971.

“The kids worked really hard week in and week out and had very little letdown,” L.A. Baptist Coach Mark Bates said.

Hernandez, who had completed nine of 11 passes for 211 yards by halftime, set the pace for the Knights offensively, while the Knights’ defense held Brethren Christian’s running game in check.

L.A. Baptist held Brethren Christian (11-3) to 183 yards.

Brethren Christian, which had been giving up an average of only 188, allowed 308--235 in the first half. But the Warriors’ biggest gaffe was allowing Romero to roam their secondary in single coverage during the first half.

“I was surprised when they came out in man-to-man coverage,” Hernandez said. “There’s no way anyone in the division can cover Jim Romero man-to-man.”

Despite a heavy pass rush in the first half, Hernandez picked apart the Brethren Christian secondary. But no defensive back was more picked on than junior Michael Harriman.

“I couldn’t believe that they were bump-and-running without any help,” Bates said. “He’s the best receiver in Division X.”

Harriman was visibly frustrated by the athleticism of Romero, who had caught six passes for 195 yards and three touchdowns by halftime.

Romero made his first catch on the Knights’ second play of the game. One play later, he beat Harriman on a post pattern and scored on a 36-yard strike just 61 seconds into the game, prompting Harriman to slam his fists into his thigh pads in anger.

Romero scored twice more before Harriman was pulled in favor of Reggie Davis in the second half.

Romero scored on pass plays of 81 and 17 yards in the second quarter.

But it was Dana Berg’s 95-yard kickoff return for a score with less than two minutes remaining until the intermission that seemed to put an end to Brethren Christian’s hopes. Berg scored three times.

Brethren Christian turned the ball over four times and could not get its running game rolling. Keith Washington scored on runs of four, one and one yards and finished with 83 yards in 21 carries for the Warriors.