SOUTHERN SECTION FOOTBALL SEMIFINALS : Southern Conference : El Toro, Santa Ana Coast Into Final : Diaz Leads Chargers in 34-14 Romp

El Toro High School running back Aly Diaz, reduced to a cameo role most of the season, took the spotlight Friday in the Chargers’ semifinal game against rival Mission Viejo in the Southern Conference playoffs.

Diaz rushed for 255 yards in 28 carries and scored 4 touchdowns as the Chargers breezed to a 34-14 victory in front of 6,000 fans in Orange Coast College’s LeBard Stadium.

The victory set up a long-anticipated showdown with defending conference champion Santa Ana for the title next Saturday at a site to be determined today in the Southern Section office at Cerritos.

El Toro, top-seeded in this year’s playoffs, will enter the game with a 13-0 record and the momentum of three impressive playoff victories. Santa Ana (12-1) advanced with a 26-6 victory over Lynwood. The Saints figure to be the only team capable of giving El Toro a challenge in the 16-team conference.

“Thirty-four points with four turnovers ain’t too shabby,” El Toro Coach Bob Johnson said.

Neither was Diaz, who averaged 9.1 yards a carry and scored on runs of 47, 19 and 13 yards. He also teamed with quarterback Bret Johnson on a 21-yard pass play for a touchdown. Not bad for a guy whose first name has been listed as “Andy” in the game program with the wrong number all season.

Of course, Diaz benefited from an outstanding offensive line that continually opened large holes for the Twentynine Palms High transfer. Tackles Rick Mink and Jon Barron, guards Pete Young and Daren Dudgeon, center John Shoffeitt and tight end Mike Hoelker made it pretty easy for Diaz.

“El Toro’s offensive line is one of the finest you’ll ever see in high school football,” Mission Viejo Coach Bill Crow said. “In all my years of coaching, that team rates right at the top. They can beat you so many different ways.”

The Chargers nearly duplicated their 38-14 victory over Mission Viejo four weeks ago in the South Coast League despite the turnovers. Johnson threw two interceptions in a game for the first time this season and Diaz fumbled twice.

But El Toro also displayed its multiple ways of scoring as Johnson threw two touchdown passes and Diaz ran for three more scores behind a huge offensive line. If that’s not enough, the Chargers’ defense limited Mission Viejo to minus three yards rushing.

“Nobody likes to play a team for a second time in the season,” Johnson said. “It’s un-American. Do you think UCLA would want to play USC again? But the team met the challenge. Our defense was super, and Aly had one of his best games of the season.”

Mission Viejo entered the game with a mediocre 7-5 record but had scored upsets over Beverly Hills and Foothill to reach the semifinals. Diablo quarterback Tony Arnone had been instrumental in Mission Viejo’s resurgence, and he had another fine game against El Toro.

Arnone was the Diablo offense. He completed 17 of 31 pass attempts for 260 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a short screen pass to tailback Darrin Sweazy that Sweazy turned into an 80-yard touchdown play with 6:58 left in the first half.

The play cut El Toro’s lead to 12-7 in the second quarter and gave the Diablos some short-lived momentum. Mission Viejo played the heavily favored Chargers evenly for the remainder of the half, only to have a missed assignment change the complexion of the game.

El Toro faced a fourth down at the Mission Viejo 21-yard line with 49 seconds remaining in the first half when Diaz lined up on the left side of the line. A Diablo defender failed to pick up Diaz and he was all alone in the end zone when Johnson lofted a 21-yard pass for a touchdown and a 20-7 lead at halftime.

“I don’t know what happened,” Crow said. “I should have called a timeout. Everybody in the stadium saw what was going to happen except our secondary. That play killed us.”