Football Playoffs: Mission Viejo 45, Crespi 0

Mission Viejo’s pursuit of a Southern Section Pac-5 championship got off to a good start Friday as the Diablos scored an easy victory over the final at-large team, Encino Crespi. 

The Diablos got strong performances in all facets of the game, and advance to the second round against another Orange County power, Mater Dei, next week at Santa Ana Stadium.

• See Patch's Playoff Analysis

Score: Mission Viejo 45, Crespi 0

Key Stats: Alex Suchesk rushed 10 times for 123 yards and four touchdowns, of 1, 1, 57 and 24 yards.

Pivotal Moment: Crespi was already down 14-0 late in the first quarter, but had put together its best drive, to the Mission 47. But instead of taking it in and making the contest competitive, a fumbled pitch was returned 23 yards by Ryan Eachus to the Crespi 19. Two plays later, Daniel Marx scored from 2 yards and the Diablos led, 21-0, with 1:13 left in the first. Game over.

Quotable: "I thought we played very well defensively, offensively, pretty darn good ball game," Mission Viejo coach Bob Johnson said. "I'm very happy with it, but it's just one though. One of a bunch. Thought we put together a pretty good game plan. Our coaches do a great job."

Quotable II: “We were already beat up coming in, we had a couple of guys get hurt and it was apparent the outcome wasn’t going to change," Crespi coach Troy Thomas said of his decision to ask for a running clock in the second half while already trailing 38-0. "All four linebackers were out of position. I felt like at that point, it was time to move forward for next year.” 

Records: Misson Viejo (11-0), Crespi (4-7)

Notes: Ian Fieber completed seven of 12 passes for 167 yards befoe giving way to Hunter Bland in the third quarter. …  Mission scored on all six of its first half possessions, including Zach Olson’s 28-yard field goal two minutes into the second quarter for a 24-0 lead. … Suchesk, who scored from 1 yard on Mission’s first two possessions, peeled off 57 and 24-yard scoring runs in the final six minutes of the first half that gave the Diablos a 38-0 lead. … Crespi was missing three starters in the secondary, and Mission took advantage. …  Crespi is coached by former Servite coach Troy Thomas, in his first year back with the Celts. 

PAC-5 PLAYOFF RESULTS

First Round

Top Bracket

St. John Bosco 69, Agoura 24

Tesoro 49, Long Beach Cabrillo 32

Servite 42, Westlake 21

Alemany 48, Lakewood 29

Bottom Bracket

Long Beach Poly 18, Orange Lutheran 16

St. Bonaventure 35, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 21

Mater Dei 28, Oaks Christian 17

Mission Viejo 45, Crespi 0