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High School Sports

PREP FOOTBALL PLAYOFF GAMES

By BEN BOLCH

Laguna Hills (6-4) vs. Loara (8-2)

7:30 TONIGHT GLOVER STADIUM

Each team comes into the game on a roll. Laguna Hills has won two of its last three, while Loara has won five in a row--including two of its last three by shutout. The Hawks are making their first playoff appearance since a 56-14 victory over La Mirada in the 1997 title game. Last season, Laguna Hills would have made the playoffs as the Pacific Coast League champion if it hadn’t had to forfeit three victories for using an ineligible player. This time around, the Hawks are the No. 3 entrant from the Sea View League. Loara is the No. 1 entrant from the Empire League.

KEY PLAYERS

Laguna Hills

RB Ajay Allen

197 yds., 3.5 per carry

QB Brandon Champlin

46.5%, 13 TDs, 12 ints.

WR Jay Dale

39 rec., 680 yds., 9 TDs

Loara

DB Rudy Acosta

9 ints.

RB Billy Chavez

1,312 yds., 7.1 per carry

QB Jeremy Ellis

55.8%, 7 TDs, 7 ints.

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Ben Bolch

Ben Bolch has been a Los Angeles Times staff writer since 1999. He is serving his second stint as the UCLA beat writer, which seems fitting since he has covered almost every sports beat except hockey and horse racing. Bolch is also the author of the recently released book “100 Things UCLA Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die.” He previously covered UCLA basketball from 2010-11 before going on to cover the NBA and the Clippers for five years. He happily traded in gobs of hotel points and airline miles to return to cover UCLA basketball and football in the summer of 2016. Bolch was once selected by NBA TV’s “The Starters” as the “Worst of the Week” after questioning their celebrity journalism-style questions at an NBA All-Star game and considers it one of his finer moments.

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