Santa Margarita topples unbeaten Sierra Canyon in quarterfinal showdown
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A rare November storm dumped continuous gallons of rain on players and fans Friday night across Southern California, creating opportunities for underdogs in the quarterfinals of the high school football playoffs.
No one was better prepared for rain than Santa Margarita quarterback Trace Johnson, who played last season in Florida. “Every other game was rain,” he said.
Johnson fired touchdown passes of 33 and 34 yards to sophomore Ryan Clark to help No. 5-seeded Santa Margarita (8-3) hand No. 4-seeded Sierra Canyon (10-1) its first defeat, 21-9, to advance to the Southern Section Division 1 semifinals.
The big stunner of the night was No. 8-seeded Orange Lutheran eliminating No. 1-seeded St. John Bosco 20-19 when the Braves missed an extra point in the final two minutes. Orange Lutheran (3-8) lost to St. John Bosco 48-0 in the regular season. The big play was sophomore King Rich Johnson returning an interception for a touchdown and a 20-13 lead. The Lancers will host Santa Margarita next week at Orange Coast College.
“To go from losing 48-0 to beating a team in the playoffs speaks to their character and continued growth,” Orange Lutheran coach Rod Sherman said. “Our goal is to play our best football at the end of the year. We don’t make excuses with our young team. We played our best football game of the year. I’m super proud of our guys. They got over the mental block that they can play with anyone in the country.”
The other semifinal will have Mater Dei at Corona Centennial. Centennial defeated Servite 41-6. Mater Dei defeated Mission Viejo 20-0.
Sierra Canyon had never trailed this season, led by a defense considered the best in the region. But Johnson stunned the Trailblazers with his touchdown pass to Clark at the end of the first half for a 7-3 halftime lead. Sierra Canyon scored on its opening possession of the second half to go on top 9-7, but after that, it was Santa Margarita’s defense displaying its dominating form.
Isaia Vandermade sacked Sierra Canyon quarterback Laird Fink twice in the second half. He also batted down a pass attempt. Fink was limited to 92 yards passing. The Eagles had three second-half sacks, with leading tackler Leki Holani making tackle after tackle.
Santa Margarita entered the Division 1 playoffs under first-year coach Carson Palmer having played six of the seven teams in one of the toughest regular-season schedules. Palmer singled out Clark, who’s also the Eagles’ punter.
“He was unbelievable,” Palmer said. “He made plays all night.”
Said Clark: “They were great throws. We practiced good all week.”
Sierra Canyon’s Jaxsen Stokes rushed for 106 yards, but lost opportunities in the first half proved costly. The Trailblazers tried three field goals. Carter Sobel made a 34-yard field goal, but he had one blocked and missed from 42 yards. Fink had a pass intercepted in the end zone by Siua Holani in another huge play for the Eagles.
With seven commits to USC playing on the drenched Sierra Canyon all-weather field and USC Heisman Trophy winner Palmer coaching Santa Margarita, it would have been a perfect time to hire Traveler to take a gallop around the field or borrow the Trojans’ band to play “Tusk.”
Palmer has certainly made an impact in his first s†int as a high school coach.
“It’s been real fun and it’s still going,” he said.
