LA HABRA — The La Habra football team won the battle in the trenches and ran the ball almost exclusively in a 13-7 victory over Cathedral in a CIF SS Division 4 quarterfinal Friday at La Habra High School.
The Highlanders (9-3) will play on the road against Oaks Christian in the semifinals next Friday, Nov. 21. It will be their first trip to the semifinals since 2019. Oaks Christian defeated Paraclete 28-14 in the quarterfinals.
La Habra coach Frank Mazzotta said the initial game plan was for his team to throw the ball more but the inclement weather forced the Highlanders to keep the ball on the ground.
But regardless of the conditions, Mazzotta felt the Highlanders would have success running against the Phantoms (6-6).
“We thought that we could (run),” Mazzotta said. “We just didn’t plan on being in that tight of formation.”
In the first half, La Habra ran 29 running plays and threw only two passes.
The Highlanders offensive line made it possible for Kevika Mata’Utia-Martinez to gain 149 yards on 29 carries.
Highlanders quarterback D.J. Mitchell had 19 carries for 88 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown that gave La Habra a 6-0 lead in the second quarter.
Mitchell’s touchdown run capped a 16-play, 97-yard drive in which the Highlanders didn’t throw a single pass.
“We had plans for passes,” Mata’Utia-Martinez said. “We always try to mix it up here at La Palma. We want to pound you and when you spread it or come in, we want to hit that pass. These conditions might have changed it up a little bit as the game went but we were able to do it.”
Mitchell only threw four passes, but one was clutch 47-yard completion to Barrett Blied on a third-and-8 play from the La Habra 22 in the fourth quarter.
That play set up a 19-yard touchdown from Mitchell to Bryce Vasquez on fourth-and-8 from the Cathedral 19.
“On Monday, we had a whole different game plan,” Mitchell said. “But we checked the weather and it was raining. On Thursday, we changed the game plan. We knew we had to run to win the game.”
The Highlanders defense also played a huge role in the victory, holding Cathedral to one score after the Phantoms scored 40 points in a victory over Western in the first round of the playoffs.
In the first half, the Highlanders held the Phantoms’ offense to 53 total yards on three possessions.
In the second quarter, the Highlanders’ Santi Bautista Cuesta had an interception on the La Habra 2, preventing a potential score.
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