Going 55, Hart Can’t Be Caught : High school football: Quartz Hill makes an early run but is unable to keep up in Division II semifinals.

Are you listening, Antelope Valley?

Hart High sent a message to its opponent in this week’s Southern Section Division II championship game by blasting Quartz Hill, 55-23, in a semifinal game Saturday night.

The Indians (13-0) scored a touchdown on eight of their first nine possessions, including five in a row in the second quarter.

“Right now, we’re just clicking big-time,” said Hart running back Ted Iacenda, who scored four touchdowns, giving him 40 for the season.

Said Indians Coach Mike Herrington: “We just hope we don’t slow down.”

Can anyone slow down the Indians’ complex one-back offense?

Hart has scored 106 points in its last two games. The Indians rolled up 348 yards and six touchdowns in the first half against the Rebels (7-4-2).

After Hart’s final touchdown, early in the fourth quarter, the contingent of Antelope Valley players watching the game from the stands (the Antelopes won their semifinal Friday night) left en masse.

Were they impressed?

“They look pretty big up front,” Antelope Valley’s Justin Reinier said while walking out of the stadium. “But I think we have them outspeeded. Hart will go down.”

A more-objective source was Quartz Hill quarterback Damein Kendrid, because he has faced both teams.

“I think they’re pretty evenly matched,” he said. “It should be a good game.

“They’re just a great team. It’s hard. They’ve got a lot of good athletes. I’m glad we didn’t give up. We played our hearts out.”

The final will be held Friday night at College of the Canyons.

“We’ve got a tough opponent (next week),” Herrington said. “I said at the beginning of the playoffs, ‘Hey, AV could be the toughest team in the tournament.’ They were awesome (Friday night in their 28-0 victory over Peninsula) against a very good team.”

This will be Herrington’s first trip to a Southern Section final as a head coach. Hart won Southern Section titles in 1983 and 1986 when Herrington was an assistant coach for the Indians.

Quartz Hill’s hopes of upsetting its third consecutive playoff opponent were quashed in the nightmarish first half.

In what turned out to be a harbinger, Iacenda scored on a 49-yard pass play from quarterback Steve McKeon on the game’s first play from scrimmage.

Then, a brief interlude.

Quartz Hill scored the next 10 points and actually led, 10-7, at the end of the first quarter.

The Rebels evened the score, 7-7, on an 80-yard touchdown pass play from Kendrid to James Welch, and McKeon threw a wobbly interception to Monte Reed three plays later. A 29-yard field goal by Jeff Diamond gave the Rebels their high-water mark.

That vanished during Hart’s second-quarter onslaught--three touchdown runs by Iacenda and one by J.B. Nelson.

Quartz Hill did manage another 80-yard touchdown pass play, from Kendrid to Charlie Abbott on a flea flicker.

But Hart scored on its lone possession of the third quarter and on came the reserves.

Kendrid also scored on a 90-yard pass play from backup quarterback Brian Woodworth in the fourth quarter.

Kendrid completed six of 16 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns in addition to throwing an interception. He also caught three passes for 142 yards after switching to wide receiver in the fourth quarter.

Iacenda finished with 107 yards in 15 carries, with 105 of the yards coming in the first half.

“We knew they were going to come in all fired up,” Iacenda said. “We knew not to look past them. We were not going to go out like that.”

McKeon completed 10 of 14 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns.