Antelope Valley Upsets Dominguez

Antelope Valley High thought it had ended USC-bound quarterback Jason Thomas’ high school football career eight weeks ago.

Now, the Antelopes are sure of it.

Antelope Valley upset second-seeded Dominguez, 28-25, on Friday night in a Southern Section Division II quarterfinal at Mays Field in Lancaster, withstanding a furious rally led by the All-American senior, who had broken his left ankle against the Antelopes two months ago.

“This is a game I will remember for the rest of my life,” said Antelope Valley receiver Joe Manning, who caught touchdown passes of 36 and 12 yards from quarterback Justin Mobley.

Antelope Valley (8-3) advances to its fifth consecutive division semifinal next week, when it plays third-seeded Ayala, which beat Hawthorne, 20-17.

The victory was improbable. The defending division champion Dons (10-2) had won 24 of their last 25 games, including three victories over Antelope Valley in the last 13 months.

“We kept telling everyone to expect to win, to have confidence,” Coach Brent Newcomb said. “We’ve had some very big wins here, but this might be one of the biggest.”