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Foothill football builds big lead, then holds off Lakewood on final play in quarterfinals

November 16, 2024

TUSTIN — The Foothill football team’s last ride with coach Doug Case at the helm rolls on.

Next stop: the CIF-SS semifinals.

Gino Marchetti threw three touchdown passes to Nico Mancini and running back Nathan Gouvion added two scores as the Knights held on to beat Lakewood 38-35 in the CIF-SS Division 5 quarterfinals on Friday night at Tustin High.

The Knights (7-5) advance to face Palos Verdes (7-5) in the semifinals, and they extended Case’s tenure at least one more week. Case is retiring at the end of the season.

The Knights are also just one win away from their first CIF-SS finals appearance since 2002.

Lakewood had an opportunity at the end to the grab the victory, but Kade Casillas’ last-second heave to Caleb Tafua fell incomplete, setting off a jubilant celebration on the Foothill sideline.

“It came down to the last play,” Case said. “As a spectator you can’t ask for anything else, but as a coach, it gives me a heart attack.”

The Knights beat third-seeded Moorpark in the first round and will now host No. 2 seed Palos Verdes on Friday, Nov. 22.

The Lancers (7-5) scored on their first two possessions to take a 14-7 lead, but Foothill then scored 28 consecutive points for a 35-14 lead.

The Knights tied the game on Gouvion’s 28-yard run and forced a Lakewood punt late in the first half.

Foothill took over at their own 25 and scored in just 42 seconds later, using a 25-yard catch by Troy Naulty to flip the field. Marchetti and Mancini capped the drive with a lovely back-shoulder throw and catch that went for a 14-yard score and a 21-14 halftime advantage.

The Knights continued displaying their big-play ability in the third quarter with a 67-yard catch by Mancini less than a minute into the second half and a 40-yard run by Gouvion gave them a 35-14 lead.

“We had the ball in the second half and we went big right away. And then another touchdown by Gouvion. It was exciting,” Case said.

Mancini finished with four catches for 162 yards and three scores and Gouvion ran for 186 yards and two TDs.

“We gave up explosive plays,” Lakewood coach Justin Utupo said. “Foothill did a good job of running the ball to the boundary, and their receivers made the plays they needed to make.”

The Lancers responded late in the third quarter when Tafua caught a 10-yard TD pass from Casillas

The game started the shift when the Knights committed their only turnover early in the fourth quarter.

A snap went over Marchetti’s head and as he tried to corral it, a Lakewood player landed on him and he reinjured his throwing shoulder.

The Lancers capitalized on that turnover when JoJo Apisala scored a TD on a 5-yard run to bring Lakewood within seven points.

Knights backup quarterback Jake Lind came into the game on the next drive and completed one pass that went for 41 yards to Naulty. The Knights got a 29-yard field goal from Colton Thorne to take a 38-28 lead.

Utupo was hoping for a crucial stop and an opportunity to tie the game, but instead Naulty got free and made an important catch.

“They kept the tight end home in the run game and then caught us sleeping with the tight end pop,” Utupo said. “That kept the drive alive. Their kicker made the field goal and we go down 10.”

Apisala, who rushed for 153 yards, added an 18-yard TD reception in the fourth quarter.

Case now has 219 career wins between his time at Rancho Alamitos and Foothill, which places him in a tie with Terry Henigan, the longtime Irvine coach.

“We’re looking to get back to the finals but we can’t overlook Palos Verdes by any means,” Case said, “but if we want to get to the show then we have to take care of business next week.”

Orange County Register

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Foothill football builds big lead, then holds off Lakewood on final play in quarterfinals

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