PREP EXTRA: SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS : DIVISION V : Valencia’s Mistakes Open the Door for Foothill

Turnovers terminated Valencia from the Division V playoffs Friday night.

Four turnovers, three of them coming on the Tigers’ final three drives, gave Foothill a 14-7 victory in the second round at Valencia.

The victory sets up a rematch between No. 4 Foothill and top-seeded Newport Harbor, which eliminated Brea-Olinda, next Friday night at a site to be determined. Newport Harbor beat Foothill, 28-7, in the third game of the regular season.

Three interceptions--two by Nick Sveslosky and one by sophomore Lawrence Mariner--of passes by Valencia quarterback Joe Secoda allowed Foothill, which won its seventh in a row, to eliminate the Tigers, who’s four-game winning streak ended.

Sveslosky’s two interceptions ended scoring drives by Valencia late in the third quarter and early in the fourth. Mariner’s interception came with 2:35 left as Foothill (8-4) ran out the clock.

“We were trying to make the plays but we weren’t able to,” Valencia Coach Mike Marrujo said. “Joe’s played well for us the entire year, but it was just one of those things. We tried to go deep, but it got away from us. (Foothill) made one more play than we did and ended up winning the ball game.”

Mariner’s 18-yard run with 4:26 remaining in the third quarter was the difference. It came after Valencia had tied the score on its first possession of the quarter.

A turnover led to Foothill’s first touchdown late in the first half. Running back Aaron Carbajal fumbled and Travis Freeman recovered, giving the Knights possession on the Valencia 39 with 1:07 left in the second quarter.

Two plays later, Foothill quarterback Tyler Lang hit wide receiver Cody Clemmons at the 25. Clemmons then lateraled to a streaking Tramel Robinson, who ran in untouched down the sidelines for a 25-yard scoring run and a 7-0 Foothill lead with 37 seconds remaining in the half.

Valencia scored on its first play of the third quarter. Secoda hit Jermaine Gray over the middle and the 6-foot, 200-pound senior broke two tackles and ran 83 yards into the end zone, tying the score with only 2:37 off the clock. Gray was a big part of of Valencia’s offense, catching four passes for 125 yards.

But Foothill answered, driving 77 yards in eight plays, as Mariner, who had 63 yards rushing in eight carries, scored on a counter for the game-winner. Foothill Coach Tom Meiss had predicted a defensive contest before the game. And though he wasn’t surprised by the outcome, he wasn’t too pleased with his team’s play either.

“It’s about what I expected, a dog fight,” he said. “But I thought, ‘boy we made some stupid mistakes.’ ”

Foothill finished with 333 yards on offense. Robinson rushed for 80 yards in 10 carries. Secoda completed seven of 20 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown.