Foothill Takes to Air to Beat Cypress, 48-14

TUSTIN —  Foothill senior quarterback Tyler Lang completed nine of 10 passes for 222 yards and three touchdowns--including two to Lawrence Mariner--as the Knights rolled to a 48-14 victory over Cypress in the Southern Section Division V playoffs Friday at Tustin High.

Foothill (8-2) advances to the second round to play Newport Harbor, a 29-6 winner over Anaheim, next week. A coin flip will be held today to determine the site.

The Knights, playing in the postseason for the first time since 1994, struggled early, but got a lift on Franklin Haynes’ interception, which he returned 37 yards for the team’s first score.

After a Cypress punt, Foothill made it 14-0 on its first play as Lang connected with Mariner on a short pass that the big tight end turned into a 70-yard touchdown.

Lang then hit Chad Concolino for a 19-yard strike seven seconds into the second quarter.

Foothill took a 28-0 halftime lead on a 46-yard touchdown pass from Lang to Mariner, who finished the night with five catches for 150 yards.

Cypress (4-7) scored its first touchdown with 7:51 left in the third quarter on a 12-play drive that was extended when a Foothill facemask penalty on fourth and 11 gave the Centurions a first down at the Foothill 13.

Four plays later, James Law threw a screen pass to Kelly Patterson, who ran 11 yards for the score.

Foothill’s Concolino took the ensuing kickoff 35 yards to the Cypress 37. The Knights scored on a 13-yard run by Jordan Raybourn.

Foothill’s Jason Poston and Eric Perugini scored the team’s last two touchdowns.