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Mustangs succumb to Central By RANDY HAMMERICKSEN EUGENE -- Hidden Valley had just taken a two-point lead in the closing minutes of the first half. The Mustangs, thanks to the momentum they generated from halfback Tim Orr's 7-yard touchdown run to cap a 66-yard drive, looked like they could indeed play with fifth-ranked Capital Conference champion Central after being pummeled and eliminated by the Panthers a year ago in the Class 3A high school state football playoffs. But just after the Mustangs galloped to a 16-14 lead, things started to go wrong. And the Panthers started making big plays. Central scored 17 unanswered points in the final 2 minutes and 32 seconds of the second quarter and tacked on 17 more to start the third period on the way to defeating Hidden Valley, 55-24, Saturday in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs at Autzen Stadium. Central (11-1) moves on to meet Vale in the semifinals next Saturday. Hidden Valley ended its season with a 9-2 record. "You have to give them a lot of credit," said Hidden Valley coach Jim Figoni. "That's a very good football team. They can make a lot of plays with their offense. "Our kids played pretty well. We will reload and be back next year." Central quarterback Jason Coutts, a senior who is being recruited by Utah and Oregon State, completed 14 of 22 passes for 278 yards and three touchdowns. Coutts, the son of Central head coach Bill Coutts, added insult to the injury by running for 32 yards. "We felt their defense might be a little weak on the outside and we wanted to try to get outside and run," said Jason Coutts. ``I was able to get out there and make some big runs." But he paid a physical price. Coutts suffered what was believed to be a bruised shoulder when he was hit hard by a Hidden Valley defender on one of his runs. "He separated his shoulder in this game last year and I'm worried about him," said Bill Coutts. "We need him for the Vale game. I think he's all right, but we don't know for sure yet." "It feels all right," said Jason Coutts. "I can move my shoulder pretty well, and it doesn't hurt much." Coutts' favorite receiver, senior Dane Oliver, caught eight passes for 201 yards, including a 7-yard touchdown pass that helped the Panthers take a 45-16 lead in the third quarter. Earlier in the period, Charlie Harris of Central hauled in a 12-yard touchdown pass from Coutts. Central kicker Kirk Yliniemi kicked a 52-yard field goal, a Class 3A state playoff record, to lift the Panthers to a 48-6 lead with 2:34 left in the third period. Central started its rampage of scoring 34 straight points with 2:32 left in the second quarter on a 41-yard field goal by Yliniemi. Central drove 35 yards to a touchdown on a 1-yard plunge by Freddi Avila with 43 seconds left in the first half. On Hidden Valley's first snap of its next possession, linebacker Brad Burge of Central intercepted a pass from Hidden Valley quarterback Matt Kennedy and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown. That helped Central take a 31-16 halftime lead. "We kind of let down after that interception," said Hidden Valley defensive back Willie Isley. "We never gave up, but that one hurt." "I think it turned the game around," said Figoni. "We had just taken the lead a few minutes before that. And that was the highlight of the game for us." Halfback Josh Pairan scored Central's final touchdown on a 3-yard run with 4:51 left in the game. Hidden Valley answered with eight points by Orr on a 22-yard touchdown run and 2-point conversion scamper. 3 The Mustangs tied the game at 7-7 in the first quarter on a 63-yard interception return for a touchdown by Isley. "I was reading the eyes of the quarterback all the way," said Isley. "I was ready for it. I was waiting for them to throw (to Oliver), and I just stepped in front." Central regained the lead at 14-7 on a 41-yard touchdown pass from Coutts to Oliver. Nathan Combe kicked a 28-yard field goal for Hidden Valley to narrow the Central lead to 14-10. Then, Hidden Valley drove 67 yards to Orr's 7-yard touchdown run to take its short-lived 16-14 lead. Orr rushed 26 times for 109 yards and caught 2 passes for 37 yards. Isley had 5 catches for 41 yards. Kennedy completed 10 of 18 passes for 139 yards. He threw two interceptions. "Our interception (by Burge) was a real back- breaker for them," said Bill Coutts. "It was a real uplifting play for us." Scoring by quarters Hidden Valley ........................ 7 9 0 8-- 24 Central ..........................14 17 17 7 -- -- 55 Individual scoring:Tpe C -- Coutts 1 run (Yliniemi kick). HV -- Isley 27 interception return (Combe kick). HV -- Combe 28 field goal. HV -- Orr 7 run (kick failed). C -- Ylinemi 41 field goal. C -- Avila 1 run (Yliniemi kick). C -- Burge 27 interception return (Yliniemi kick) . C -- Harris 12 pass from Coutts (Yliniemi kick). C -- Oliver 7 pass from Coutts (Yliniemi kick). C -- Yliniemi 52 field goal. C -- Parian 3 run (Hliniemi kick). HV -- Orr 22 run. (Orr run). Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford,