Hart Gets Run Out by Peninsula, 35-10

WILMINGTON —  It certainly wasn’t the way Hart High Coach Mike Herrington envisioned his football team’s season coming to an end.

At a facility seemingly unfit to host a Southern Section semifinal, on a rain-drenched field, the Indians were routed, 35-10, by Peninsula in a Division II semifinal at Harbor College.

Not only that but two key Hart players--Kyle Boller and Nate Small--sustained serious injuries early in the game.

“It’s hard to reflect on the season right now,” Herrington said standing in three inches of mud after the game. “Obviously you don’t want to go out like this, but I guess the bad thing about the playoffs is that only one team can finish happy.”

Despite the shabby field, which barely had enough seating for Hart fans and did not include space for Hart coaches in the press box, the Indians allowed a season-high 415 rushing yards. Three Panther players ran for more than 100 yards.

The Panthers will play the winner of tonight’s Antelope Valley-Ayala game in next week’s final.

“We play pretty good defense all year and then we pick this game to play our worst defensive game of the year,” Herrington said. “And it’s not like they were breaking the line of scrimmage with huge holes. Our guys were in position to make plays and we just didn’t.”

Leading, 14-10, Peninsula (13-0) took possession after a failed Hart onside kick to open the second half.

The Panthers then marched 47 yards in 12 plays, all runs. Brad Durbin, who had 104 yards and two touchdowns in 15 carries, capped the drive with a two-yard plunge to make the score 21-10.

Hart (11-2) went 64 yards in it’s next possession, but failed to score when quarterback David Neill was sacked for an 11-yard loss on third-and goal. The ensuing 22-yard fourth down completion was short.

Peninsula, which held the ball for 15 minutes and 18 seconds in the second half, then went 94 yards in 10 plays, again all runs, to pull ahead 28-10.

Small, a receiver sustained an unconfirmed injury early in the second quarter and lay motionless on the Hart sideline for more than 30 minutes before an ambulance arrived and transported him to a local hospital.

Reports were that Small took a helmet to his lower back and was experiencing numbness in his outer extremities.

Boller, a defensive back, suffered a broken clavical on Hart’s third offensive play. Boller, the Indians’ backup quarterback, took a pass behind the line of scrimmage from Neill and appeared to be looking downfield for a double pass. He couldn’t find the grip and tucked the ball and ran. He was hit hard for no gain. The same play went for a 50-yard gain against Palmdale last week.

Small was suposed to be Boller’s backup.

Neill connected with Jerry Owens on an impressive 30-yard touchdown pass play to pull Hart within 14-10 with 6:38 left in the first half. Owens, in double coverage, somehow came down with the lofted ball at about the five yard line and his momentum carried him into the end zone.

Defensive end John Harrison stopped Brad Durbin on a fourth-and-one play from the Hart 11-yard line with 1:07 left in the first half. Hart marched 41 yards in five plays, but the drive ended when George Thimsen interecepted a Neill pass at the Panther 11 and Peninsula took a 14-10 lead.

Division II Championship

Peninsula vs. Ayala or Antelope Valley

* Site and time of game to be announced