Rancho Alamitos Strikes Fast

GARDEN GROVE — Rancho Alamitos needed only 18 seconds and two plays to score its first touchdown Friday night, but the rest of the game turned out to be a grind.

The top-seeded Vaqueros were able to grind it out, however, beating defending champion Aliso Niguel, 21-7, in a Southern Section Division VIII first-round playoff game at Bolsa Grande.

David Vickers, playing with a sore foot that has limited his practice time for the last four weeks, gained 234 yards in 27 carries and scored all three touchdowns.

Rancho Alamitos’ defense consistently made the big plays to compensate for the funk the offensive unit lapsed into at times.

The three biggest plays stopped Aliso Niguel drives deep in the Vaqueros’ territory. The final turnover was an interception by defensive back George Gonzalez at the Rancho Alamitos 15 with less than a minute left.

The defense also came up with a key fourth down stop with Rancho Alamitos leading, 14-7, late in the third quarter.

Aliso Niguel reached the Rancho Alamitos 26 but on fourth and one, quarterback Jared Hill’s sneak was stopped before he was able to take a step forward.

Vickers dashed in from linebacker and made a big hit and teammate Shawn Young recovered Hill’s fumble at the Rancho Alamitos 24 midway through the first quarter.

“The defense has been overlooked all year long,” Rancho Alamitos Coach Doug Case said. “The press likes to write about the superstars.”

It took Vickers two plays to show why he has gained so much attention this season.

He went around left end for a 49-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage and raced the last 31 yards around the right side on the next play for a touchdown and a 6-0 lead with 11 minutes 42 left in the first quarter.

But Rancho Alamitos punted on its next two possessions and Aliso Niguel (4-7) took a 7-6 lead on a one-yard run by Nathan Eggins with 4:59 left in the half. The score was set up on a 23-yard pass from Hill to Mike Roush.

“Sometimes that’s the problem with scoring so fast,” Case said. “There’s a little bit of a letdown.”

Rancho Alamitos took the lead when Vickers scored from one yard to cap a 13-play drive that went 80 yards and took 4:40.

Vickers scored from 10 yards with 2:40 left in the game to clinch the victory for Rancho Alamitos, which is ranked fourth in Orange County.

The Vaqueros advance to play Covina Northview in the second round at site to be determined by a coin flip.

“That was a tough game,” Case said. “We could have executed a little better at times but it was a good win for Rancho.”