Palmdale Meets Hart Stopper

Hart High’s unsung hero sang loud and clear on Friday night and helped the Indians to a 28-6 victory over Palmdale in a Southern Section Division II quarterfinal game at Palmdale High.

Defensive lineman John Harrison, the quiet leader of the Hart defense who gets little recognition around Hart’s headline-grabbing offense, moved to linebacker against the Falcons and shined.

He had three sacks and four tackles for losses to pace an Indian defense that allowed 161 total yards and narrowly missed a second shutout against Palmdale this season.

Harrison, who plays fullback in short-yardage situations, also scored a rushing touchdown and caught a touchdown pass.

Hart (11-1) will face Peninsula next Friday in the semifinals at a site to be determined.

“He can play anywhere,” Hart defensive coordinator Rick Herrington said of Harrison. “He’s smart enough to know what to do at any position. He knows what all 11 guys are doing at all times.”

Herrington moved Harrison to linebacker in order to get free of Matt Leonard, Palmdale’s 6-foot-4, 295-pound tight end.

“Last time we played we learned Leonard has the ability to neutralize a player,” Herrington said. “We didn’t want that player to be Harrison. We wanted Harrison to make some tackles.”

Herrington called on sophomore Jason Autry to keep Leonard occupied while Harrison did his duty.

He set the tone on the first play of the game, dropping Palmdale running back Jason Anderson for a two-yard loss.

He effectively read Palmdale’s trick plays and almost single-handedly stopped Palmdale drives with a 13-yard sack in the second quarter, and a crushing blow on Anderson in the fourth quarter.

The Hart defense stopped Palmdale three times on fourth down plays and three more times held the Falcons to three plays and a punt.

“This team has something to prove, that’s all I know,” Harrison said. “I’m just doing it for the team.”

If not for a 58-yard pass play from Grant Livermont to Horacio Diaz late in the third quarter, Palmdale would not have scored for the second time this season against Hart, which defeated the Falcons, 20-0, in week four.

Diaz got past defensive back Jerry Owens, limping noticably on a broken toe.

That pulled Palmdale to within 21-6, but Owens made amends by running down the left sideline on a 53-yard touchdown pass play from David Neill to give the Indians a 28-6 lead with 9:25 left in the game.

Hart took a 7-0 lead on its first possession by driving 80 yards in 10 plays, capped by Harrison’s one-yard touchdown run.

Neill, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns, found Harrison for a four-yard touchdown midway through the second quarter.

Receiver Nate Small picked up the slack for Owens, who played sparingly on offense, and caught five passes for 89 yards.